Desert Fish Show Effects Of Ozone Hole

A new species of fish has been discovered in desert oases in the Outback, but many of the fish suffer from skin cancers scientists believe are due to the Earth’s thinning ozone layer.

The South Australian Research and Development Institute announced Tuesday it had found the fish, known as murgundas, which are a species of purple-spotted gudgeon.

Murgundas have lived in shallow oases in the middle of the sun-baked Outback for millions of years, but scientists only began hearing of them in the last five years.

When researchers confirmed their existence, they were astonished to find that 500 to 1,000 of the total population of 8,000 had melanomas - sun-induced skin cancers.

Bryan Pierce, the senior researcher for the institute, said Tuesday the ozone hole that develops over Antarctica each year spreads as far as Australia. He believes the increased ultraviolet light is causing melanomas in the fish, as well as increased skin cancer among humans.

Two-thirds of all Australians will suffer from melanomas.