Animals and plants have evolved very slowly to live in specific environments, but climate change is happening very fast and leaving them unable to adapt. Those suited to cooler climates must move polewards or uphill when the climate becomes just that little bit warmer. That’s easy enough for birds and fish species that would normally only be found in the Mediterranean or further south but are now turning up in UK waters as the plankton and insects they feed on move north. But for large animals, which often have restricted space in reserves, the future looks uncertain.
Polar bears
The polar bear will disappear in the wild unless the pace of global warming slows. It uses sea ice as a floating platform to catch prey, but this is melting at a rate of 9 percent a decade. Last week, arctic ice fell to its second lowest level ever.
Tigers
Tigers are threatened by climate change, and not just in the Indian and Bangladeshi Sunderbans, where sea level rises and increased salinity is reducing habitat. In Sarawak, Nepal and elsewhere, the already critically endangered animals are finding fewer animals to prey on, as monsoon patterns change, and as people near their reserves compete more with them for food.
Elephants
In Africa, elephants face a range of threats including shrinking living space, which brings them more frequently into conflict with people. With less space, they are not able to escape any changes to their natural habitat caused by global warming, including more frequent dry periods.
Frogs
Frogs and other species depending on freshwater are being hit by droughts in Australia and elsewhere. Since they rely on water to breed, any reduction or change in rainfall can reduce frog reproduction. In addition, higher temperatures dry out their breeding pools.
Orangutans
Their last remaining strongholds in the Indonesian rainforests are threatened by oil palm plantations, but also by climate change increasing the duration and frequency of droughts.
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