Climate Change

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Climate change is a topic of serious debate and at present is being driven by a process of global warming. Global warming and cooling cycles are natural events that have occurred for millions of years, but only in recent human times as a result of excessive burning of fossil fuels has the rate of warming increased at a rate previously unknown. As a result of global warming, consequences to wildlife and biodiversity are of grave concern, especially for those species that lack the capability to adapt to a rapidly changing environment. In the coming years, and given the current rate of warming, some scientists predict vast changes in the distribution and abundance of species as a result of change in habitat, precipitation, and extreme climate and weather events (e.g. prolonged periods of drought, more frequent and more violet storms). Other extensions of global warming include the melting of polar icecaps which will lead to a rise in sealevels. Ocean temperatures, which have profound effects on the distribution (latitudinally, longitudinally, and depth-wise) of marine organisms are expected to have huge detrimental and cascading effects.

The time for action to reduce the effects of global warming, by reducing the burning of fossil fuels and searching for cleaner alternatives, is now. In British Columbia, preliminary investigations have shown that global warming is already having an impact on the distribution of some species. In this section of our website, we aim to provide examples of the effects of climate change by providing summaries and reports that use data from our collections.

1) Bunnell, F.L. and K. Squires. 2005. Evaluating potential influences of climate change on historical trends in bird species. Unpublished report to BC Ministry of Land, Water, and Air Protection. 49 pp.

2) Climate Change and Biodiversity in the Americas, 25-29 February, Panama City, Panama. Bunnell, F.L., M.I. Preston, and A. Farr. 2008. Avian response to climate change in British Columbia, Canada - towards a general model (PDF)

To learn more about climate change in Canada, visit the Natural Resources Canada website.