Ocean temperatures highest in 150 years last year

Todd B. Bates, Asbury Park Press | USATODAY

Sea-surface temperatures from Cape Hatteras, N.C., to the Gulf of Maine were the highest measured in 150 years in 2012, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The average temperature in that area hit a record high of 57.2 degrees last year. The previous record was set in 1951, according to NOAA.

The average sea surface temperature has usually been below 54.3 degrees in the last 30 years, NOAA reports.

The temperature is influencing fish and shellfish on the Northeast Shelf, according to NOAA.

Four southern species – black sea bass, summer flounder, longfin squid and butterfish – have moved to the northeast, according to NOAA. American lobster has headed northeast but at a slower pace. Atlantic cod and haddock have moved in the opposite direction.