Jump to content
Ornithology Exchange (brought to you by the Ornithological Council)

Imperiled species already impacted by climate change


Cara J

Recommended Posts

Almost half of the mammals and a quarter of the birds on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species are already being negatively impacted by climate change, according to new research. As part of the study published in the journal Nature Climate Change, researchers conducted a meta-analysis in which they reviewed 130 studies on climate change impacts on wildlife around the world. The research looked at a total of about 700 mammals and birds, most of which were threatened or endangered, and the effects of climate change such as warming and drying conditions on the species. “A lot of the science around climate change was forecasting,” said co-author James Watson, the director of science at the Wildlife Conservation Society, a nonprofit dedicated to wildlife protection. “It wasn’t taking into account what has already changed today.” While past research showed that only 7 percent of mammals and 4 percent of birds on the Red List were impacted, this research suggests many of the effects on the species studied were underreported. Watson and his colleagues estimated that 47 percent of threatened mammals and about 23 percent of threatened bird species are being negatively affected by climate change. The research found that many [...]

 

Read more: http://wildlife.org/imperiled-species-already-impacted-by-climate-change/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...