When we talk about climate change, we mean climate change on a global scale, over time.
And how do we know that there was variation in the characteristics of a climate change?
A climate suffers variously when rainfall, temperature, cloudiness, among other factors change.
These climatic changes can have natural causes, by forces external to the Earth, as a Sun factor. For example, internal factors, which happens between the Earth and its atmosphere and anthropic largely due to human activities.
There are natural weather phenomena that are famous for influencing the atmospheric pressure of the ocean causing different types of climatic phenomena, such as the lack of rain in some regions, or higher temperatures and excess of rain in other places.
On a similar note, a phenomenon that has been the focus of concern is global warming. This very topic is showing an increase in the Earth’s temperature, year after year. The greenhouse effect is an important, natural, and essential event to keep the Earth warm and alive. However, it has been aggravated by the anthropic action that intensifies its development. Many human activities release gases that fuel the rise of greenhouse gas, such as the burning of fossil fuels (oil, coal, and natural gas), deforestation of native vegetation, fires, cattle farming, etc.
The consequences of climate change are very crucial. Among them, we can highlight the environmental impacts resulting from global warmings, such as the melting of the polar caps and glaciers. Warmer climates can increase epidemics of tropical diseases, such as dengue, malaria, yellow fever, or even the recent COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, earth expects an increase in sea level, changes in agriculture, suffers from drought, etc.
In addition, the number and intensity of meteorological events have increased in a short time, such as hurricanes, storms, floods, droughts. And all these events, in addition causing an economic crisis which further results in a major impact on human lives and biodiversity in the world.
Many species are unable to adjust as fast as changes and global warming which has a critical negative effect on biological communities. Climate change in some places affects species that are experts in living in that type of climate. As a result, many populations begin to migrate to areas with similar characteristics. However, some species do not have good dispersion skills or have limited dispersion which leads them to suffer and remains in greater threat of extinction. Events that create dispersion barriers, such as habitat fragmentation, contribute to extinctions.
Melting ice is certainly leading to raise sea level, flooding coastal and wet areas. The species in these ecosystems will need to migrate in order to survive. The fact is that urbanization has destroyed a large part of the wetlands that have been blocked with roads and buildings. Eventually, this is preventing the dispersion of these species are they are in the greatest threat.
In addition to the terrestrial biota that depends on a specific temperature, amount of rain, and wind to develop. There are algae, species of corals in the sea that grows from a combination of luminosity, water flow, temperature, and depth level specifics. These species will suffer the high temperatures of the oceans and the rise in sea level, which will lead to the mass death of at least 80% of coral reefs which can be known as coral bleaching. Warmer waters also affect phytoplankton, which is at the base of the marine food chain, thus, the entire chain can be affected, including with an impact on fishing and income source of many people.
Species like the Tundra vegetation in the Arctic, animals like the Polar bear are at greatest risk of extinction. Other studies show that the behavior of migratory species can change, as they search for areas of food and reproduction is becoming increasingly distant.
As a result, it is increasingly important to understand how climate change implies changes everything and, consequently, to understand the relationship between this and biodiversity. Changes coupled with other factors, such as habitat loss and fragmentation, are major threats to mass extinctions of species. But as a matter of fact, our individual actions can prevent this global warming with small acts of gratitude to Mother Nature, which are the only options we have collectively.
