The Caribbean Sea is among among areas most damaged by human activity

A new study points to pollution from ships, over-fishing - and climate change as the three major causes of damage to marine ecosystems in the waters around the region.

Scientists say nearly every corner of the world's oceans have been damaged in some way by human activity.

Other areas said to be suffering similar affects are the North Sea, the South and East China seas, the east coast of North America and the Mediterranean Sea.

The first global scale study of human influence on marine ecosystems says the biggest damage is caused by climate change.

The study found that significant increases in water temperatures have already been observed in the North Atlantic.

	The report recommends shifting shipping lines away from sensitive areas

And global warming is projected to further raise temperatures to varying extents in other areas.

The study also noted that oceans are becoming more acidic as they absorb carbon dioxide, and plants are being affected by increased ultraviolet radiation.

Over-fishing

Kim Selkoe, co-author of the study, said that research found that 80 percent of the world's ocean is fished.

There's nowhere left for the fish to hide...   Kim Selkoe, scientist

"The other really surprising thing to me what our fishing data showed 80 percent of the world's ocean is fished," Selko said.

"There's nowhere left for the fish to hide... fishing boats are
just really everywhere."

While subsistence fishing has a limited impact on ocean
ecologies, high-impact commercial fishing dumps millions of pounds of unwanted dead fish, birds and mammals back into the ocean.

This has threatened many species of turtles, birds, whales, and dolphins with extinction.

While subsistence fishing has a limited impact on ocean ecologies, high impact commercial fishing dumps millions of pounds of unwanted dead fish, birds and mammals back into the ocean.

	High impact commercial fishing is one of the culprits

This has threatened many species of turtles, birds, whales and dolphins with extinction.

According to the findings, shipping traffic is the third largest cause of damage.

"When you look at the map of the ship traffic, it's just a solid
coverage of the world's oceans," Selkoe said.

"The fuel gets spilled, there's noise pollution which is disturbing to whales and such... which has a major affect on the ecosystem."

Ms Selkoe said spilled fuel and noise pollution has a major effect on the ecosystem.

It's recommended that shifting shipping lines away from sensitive areas like coral reefs and continental shelfs could significantly reduce the impact on ocean life.