Climate-change map shows how plants and animals will need new homes

[Judi Lynn]

Climate-change map shows how plants and animals will need new homes

Australian map shows where species are moving to find their optimal temperature, with some animals facing extinction

theguardian.com, Monday 10 February 2014 00.04 EST

Australian animals and plants will increasingly have to find new homes in the coming decades due to climate change, according to research used to create new maps of how local conditions are changing.

The Nature study, by the CSIRO and an international team of scientists, illustrates areas where species are moving to find their optimal temperature, with some animals faced with the stark scenario of dying out if they are unable to move.

Research of land and sea surface temperature from 1960 and 2009 shows these changes are already taking place, with the CSIRO’s map highlighting that shifting climate conditions are most pronounced in central and eastern Australia, covering swathes of Queensland, as well as north-west Western Australia.

Arrows on the maps show the flow of localised condition changes, with blue areas indicating areas of significant change and pink areas showing “corridors” where animals and plants may be able to move through to more favourable conditions.

More:
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/feb/10/map-plants-animals-need-new-homes

[Demeter]

1. I couldn't see the bloody little map, so