Climate change is projected to increase the risk of extinction for already vulnerable species with limited climatic ranges and restricted habitats.
For example, climate change can potentially cause species to move to higher elevations in search of more suitable habitats. An analysis of the elevational distribution of birds in Southeast Asia between 1971 and 1999 observed an upward shift of the lower and upper boundaries for 94 common species in response to global warming. This upward shift occurred irrespective of the habitat specificity of the studied birds. This implies that climate change can act synergistically to human-driven habitat destruction in the region. In this respect climate change is projected to increase the risk of extinction for already vulnerable species with limited climatic ranges and restricted habitats.
The indirect effects of climate change on biodiversity are a result of the alteration of the intensity and frequency of El Nino events most likely linked to global warming. The El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) effect, a weather pattern characterized by warming of the eastern Pacific, leads to an increase in the likelihood of droughts and destructive fires. As such it has been identified as a key factor that combined with poor land management practices can increase the devastation of fires in Southeast Asia. Drought conditions triggered by ENSO across Southeast Asia markedly increase tree mortality and flammability. For example the 1997-1998 ENSO effect contributed to particularly devastating fires in Indonesia, destroying vast area of peatlands and forests. In addition to the loss of habitat, it is estimated that 1,000 orangutans in Indonesia (2.5% of the population) died from these fire events.
For example, climate change can potentially cause species to move to higher elevations in search of more suitable habitats. An analysis of the elevational distribution of birds in Southeast Asia between 1971 and 1999 observed an upward shift of the lower and upper boundaries for 94 common species in response to global warming. This upward shift occurred irrespective of the habitat specificity of the studied birds. This implies that climate change can act synergistically to human-driven habitat destruction in the region. In this respect climate change is projected to increase the risk of extinction for already vulnerable species with limited climatic ranges and restricted habitats.
The indirect effects of climate change on biodiversity are a result of the alteration of the intensity and frequency of El Nino events most likely linked to global warming. The El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) effect, a weather pattern characterized by warming of the eastern Pacific, leads to an increase in the likelihood of droughts and destructive fires. As such it has been identified as a key factor that combined with poor land management practices can increase the devastation of fires in Southeast Asia. Drought conditions triggered by ENSO across Southeast Asia markedly increase tree mortality and flammability. For example the 1997-1998 ENSO effect contributed to particularly devastating fires in Indonesia, destroying vast area of peatlands and forests. In addition to the loss of habitat, it is estimated that 1,000 orangutans in Indonesia (2.5% of the population) died from these fire events.
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