Article
Forestry
James J. Worrall, Gerald E. Rehfeldt
Summary: Research indicates that future climate change will have extensive impacts on 14 upland tree species in southwestern Colorado, with the majority of habitats being lost or threatened, and three species potentially locally extirpated. However, strategies have been proposed to utilize these projections for effective management, assisting species migration, favoring future-adapted species, and identifying potential climate refugia.
Review
Biodiversity Conservation
Carlos Carroll, Justina C. Ray
Summary: Global commitments to expand protected areas should prioritize protecting climate refugia and ecosystems that store high levels of unrecoverable carbon as effective responses to biodiversity loss and climate change. Despite being responsible for a significant portion of global greenhouse gas emissions, the US and Canada have initiated processes for expanding protected areas and recognizing nature-based solutions for climate change mitigation. Coordinated national and regional policies are needed to ensure that new protected areas maximize biodiversity-focused adaptation and nature-based mitigation opportunities.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Tomas Hlasny, Martin Mokros, Laura Dobor, Katarina Merganicova, Martin Lukac
Summary: Climate change poses a significant threat to global biodiversity, with projections showing geographic and temporal variability in Europe. By using a multi-model ensemble of regional climate models, the study identifies regions of high and low climate stability in Europe throughout the 21st century. The results suggest that prioritizing areas with high future climate stability for biodiversity conservation can improve the effectiveness of conservation efforts under climate change.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
John G. White, Jacinta Sparrius, Tomas Robinson, Susannah Hale, Luke Lupone, Tom Healey, Raylene Cooke, Anthony R. Rendall
Summary: This study examines the ecological role and importance of drought refugia in the southern section of the Grampians, Australia. The researchers use remote sensing and camera trapping to identify drought refugia and study how they respond to rainfall fluctuations. The results show that site occupancy of bird and mammal assemblages is dependent on NDVI, with high NDVI areas during drought acting as refugia. Rainfall pulses increase site occupancy, but extinction probabilities are highest in low NDVI areas when rainfall declines. Utilizing remote sensing NDVI can help identify drought refugia for prioritizing species conservation in landscape management.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Luis Carrasco, Monica Papes, Kimberly S. Sheldon, Xingli Giam
Summary: Global efforts to expand the protected area network have been made to protect biodiversity from climate change impacts, but further improvements are needed to address challenges posed by climate change.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Fumihiro Ito, Takeshi Awasaki
Summary: Temperature is a critical environmental factor that influences biological processes, and different species have different optimal temperatures for daily activities. This study analyzes the temperature preference behavior and effects of temperature on locomotor activity and sleep in 11 Drosophila species and investigates the role of antennae in temperature preference behavior. The results show that each species has its own temperature response system and maintains its daily activity and sleep pattern even at different temperatures.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Review
Ecology
Petr Kotlik, Silvia Markova, Michaela Hornikova, Marco A. Escalante, Jeremy B. Searle
Summary: This article reviews research on the bank vole, a non-traditional model species, to explore questions regarding range expansion, colonization, and evolutionary adaptation. Using population genomic data, the study examines the bank vole as a compelling example of a forest mammal that survived in cryptic glacial refugia in Europe during the Pleistocene glaciations. The article introduces the concept of adaptive phylogeography, which links population history and adaptation, and discusses its potential in predicting species responses to climate change.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Guo Li, Nengwen Xiao, Zunlan Luo, Dongmei Liu, Zhiping Zhao, Xiao Guan, Chunxin Zang, Junsheng Li, Zehao Shen
Summary: This study mapped and predicted range changes of gymnosperm species in China, proposed a multi-criteria framework for identifying conservation priority areas, and highlighted gaps in gymnosperm conservation. Results indicated that the centers of gymnosperm species richness in China were in subtropical mountains, with many species facing threats from future climate changes.
BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION
(2021)
Review
Biodiversity Conservation
Cathleen Balantic, Andrea Adams, Shana Gross, Rachel Mazur, Sarah Sawyer, Jody Tucker, Marian Vernon, Claudia Mengelt, Jennifer Morales, James H. Thorne, Timothy M. Brown, Nicole Athearn, Toni Lyn Morelli
Summary: The article introduces a conservation strategy, climate change refugia conservation, which aims to identify and protect areas buffered from contemporary climate change for valued resources. By leveraging existing resources, prioritizing, managing, and monitoring refugia, new practical insights for ecosystem management at ecoregion scales in the face of climate change may be provided.
CONSERVATION SCIENCE AND PRACTICE
(2021)
Article
Oceanography
Leah L. Bremer, Makena Coffman, Alisha Summers, Lisa C. Kelley, William Kinney
Summary: Effective and equitable coastal decision-making must consider multiple coastal uses and values. This study examines the perceptions of coastal decision-makers in Hawaii on the importance of diverse uses and values of beaches and coastlines, and how these should shape the response to sea level rise. The study finds that current coastal management decisions prioritize private and monetary values over social and ecological values, resulting in detrimental effects on beaches and coastal communities. The results highlight the significance of considering localized uses and values, and the need to build understanding among different actor groups and value systems in responding to sea level rise.
OCEAN & COASTAL MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Stephen Hincks, Jeremy Carter, Angela Connelly
Summary: This paper contributes to the analysis of climate change risk in European cities and regions by developing a new spatially-explicit typology of climate risk. The analysis reveals an uneven distribution of climate change risk across countries, highlights the differences in risk characteristics between urban and rural areas, and identifies patterns of spatial clustering in climate change risk.
GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE-HUMAN AND POLICY DIMENSIONS
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Nigel W. Arnell
Summary: This paper examines the implications of climate change for current emergency planning and as an adaptation to climate change, using the UK as a case study. It highlights the need for broader risk assessment, long-term perspective, enhanced response capabilities, consideration of novel events in training and exercises, revised public engagement and messaging, and improved resilience to reduce the need for emergency response. The paper also emphasizes the importance of coordination between emergency planning and climate change adaptation to reduce current and future risks.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DISASTER RISK REDUCTION
(2022)
Article
Development Studies
Jonas Bertilsson
Summary: The conceptualization of climate change vulnerability and adaptation has evolved to include social aspects, emphasizing the importance of transformational adaptation. However, in the Green Climate Fund, the view on vulnerability is shaped by dominant logics such as science and the market, neglecting the normative and political aspects of vulnerability.
CLIMATE AND DEVELOPMENT
(2023)
Review
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Matilde Maria Passamonti, Elisa Somenzi, Mario Barbato, Giovanni Chillemi, Licia Colli, Stephane Joost, Marco Milanesi, Riccardo Negrini, Monia Santini, Elia Vajana, John Lewis Williams, Paolo Ajmone-Marsan
Summary: Livestock, domesticated in specific regions, have adapted to diverse environments worldwide. Climate change is affecting livestock welfare and productivity, with genomic studies exploring genes for adaptation. Advances in genomics, population genetics, and landscape genomics are providing insights into the interactions between genetics and the environment, leading to more efficient breeding strategies.
Article
Forestry
Mingfang Zhang, Shirong Liu, Julia Jones, Ge Sun, Xiaohua Wei, David Ellison, Emma Archer, Steve McNulty, Heidi Asbjornsen, Zhiqiang Zhang, Yusuf Serengil, Meinan Zhang, Zhen Yu, Qiang Li, Junwei Luan, Ibrahim Yurtseven, Yiping Hou, Shiyu Deng, Zipei Liu
Summary: Climate change has complex and uncertain impacts on the forest-water nexus, inhibiting adaptive forest watershed management. It alters watershed hydrology in various regions and at different scales, with different responses based on tree species, forest types, climate types, and hydrological regimes. Forest changes and management can exacerbate or mitigate the negative hydrologic impacts of climate change.
FOREST ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Biology
Richard W. Ramirez, Eric A. Riddell, Steven R. Beissinger, Blair O. Wolf
Summary: Small mammals in hot deserts have limited capacity to dissipate heat in high temperatures, relying on nocturnal activity and limited evaporative cooling. This study found that when exposed to temperatures higher than their body temperature, these mammals experienced significant increases in body temperature, excessive salivation, and limited evaporative heat dissipation. They were only able to maintain small temperature gradients and had heat tolerance limits. These findings suggest that the fast-warming environment may increasingly constrain their nocturnal activity.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Christopher J. Sergeant, Erin K. Sexton, Jonathan W. Moore, Alana R. Westwood, Sonia A. Nagorski, Joseph L. Ebersole, David M. Chambers, Sarah L. O'Neal, Rachel L. Malison, F. Richard Hauer, Diane C. Whited, Jill Weitz, Jackie Caldwell, Marissa Capito, Mark Connor, Christopher A. Frissell, Greg Knox, Erin D. Lowery, Randal Macnair, Vicki Marlatt, Jenifer K. McIntyre, Megan McPhee, Nikki Skuce
Summary: Mining operations have harmful effects on salmonids and their ecosystems, including toxic contamination, stream channel burial, and flow regime alteration. Science should guide policy-making during crucial stages of mining governance to protect salmonids.
Article
Ecology
Steven R. Beissinger, Sean M. Peterson, Laurie A. Hall, Nathan Van Schmidt, Jerry Tecklin, Benjamin B. Risk, Orien M. Richmond, Tony J. Kovach, A. Marm Kilpatrick
Summary: This study examined the impact of patch quality, matrix conditions, and biogeographic factors on turnover of wetland bird populations. The results showed that patch area and isolation were the primary drivers of turnover, while patch quality and matrix conditions had lesser effects. Furthermore, the influence of biogeographic factors on turnover remained consistent during both equilibrium and nonequilibrium dynamics.
Article
Ecology
Eric A. Riddell, James L. Patton, Steven R. Beissinger
Summary: Phenotypic convergence can be driven by similar selective pressures or intrinsic constraints. The evolution of thermal properties of mammalian pelage in the Mojave Desert was studied, revealing that species preferring arid habitats exhibit lower conductivity and thinner pelage, which provides comparable insulation due to lower conductivity. This suggests that pelage readily evolves to environmental pressures. Thermoregulatory simulations showed that arid specialists reduce energetic costs by evolving lower conductivity, supporting adaptive evolution of pelage.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Fabrizio Sergio, Giacomo Tavecchia, Julio Blas, Alessandro Tanferna, Fernando Hiraldo, Erkki Korpimaki, Steven R. Beissinger
Summary: The long-term effects of extreme climate events in early life are often overlooked in climate change impact forecasts. A recent study found that raptorial red kites born during drought are at a disadvantage throughout their lives, leading to significant decreases in predicted population size and time to extinction. These results highlight the urgent need to incorporate penalties for early life legacies in impact forecasts and suggest that climate change may have more severe and rapid impacts on populations than currently appreciated.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Correction
Biology
Ryan Schacht, Steven R. Beissinger, Claus Wedekind, Michael D. Jennions, Benjamin Geffroy, Andras Liker, Peter M. Kappeler, Franz J. Weissing, Karen L. Kramer, Therese Hesketh, Jerome Boissier, Caroline Uggla, Mike Hollingshaus, Tamas Szekely
COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Alexej Siren, Marketa Zimova, Chris S. Sutherland, John T. Finn, Jillian R. Kilborn, Rachel M. Cliche, Leighlan S. Prout, L. Scott Mills, Toni Lyn Morelli
Summary: This study focuses on the influence of resource availability on snowshoe hare populations along their trailing range edge. The results show that variability in resource availability affects population density and fluctuations, as well as survival rates. Hares living in resource-limited environments have lower population density but higher survival rates and lower parasite loads compared to populations in resource-rich environments.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Alyssa Rosemartin, Theresa M. Crimmins, Katharine L. Gerst, Erin E. Posthumus, Aaron R. Ramirez, Cynthia S. A. Wallace, Toni Lyn Morelli
Summary: Knowledge co-production, involving creators and users of information, is gaining popularity in the conservation and ecology fields. Despite its growing success, there are still barriers and challenges in this work. Through reflecting on three recent case studies, we found that team composition and early engagement with agency representatives are crucial for success. Long-term commitment and valuing a range of knowledge systems are also important factors.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & POLICY
(2023)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Laurie A. Hall, Ian J. Wang, Merly Escalona, Eric Beraut, Samuel Sacco, Ruta Sahasrabudhe, Oanh Nguyen, Erin Toffelmier, Howard Bradley Shaffer, Steven R. Beissinger
Summary: The black rail, a secretive and poorly understood bird, has experienced population declines due to wetland loss and degradation. Researchers have successfully assembled the genome of the black rail, which can provide valuable insights into its evolutionary history, population size, and adaptive evolution in the face of threats.
JOURNAL OF HEREDITY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Jessie. M. M. Doyle, Ryan. A. A. Hill, Scott. G. G. Leibowitz, Joseph. L. L. Ebersole
Summary: Channel dimensions have significant impacts on instream ecological processes and are important for habitat restoration and flow assessments. We created a dataset of modeled channel dimensions for perennial streams in the United States to facilitate research and protection of aquatic resources.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Steven R. Beissinger, Sarah A. MacLean, Kelly J. Iknayan, Perry de Valpine
Summary: Climate and land-use change can have either amplifying or moderating effects on species depending on their concordant or opposing responses. In this study, using historical surveys and modern resurveys, we found that urbanization, warming, and drying greatly reduced bird occupancy and species richness in Los Angeles, while agricultural development, warming, and increased precipitation had stable effects in the Central Valley. The combined impacts of land-use and climate change drove temporal changes in species occupancy, with both concordant and opposing effects observed.
Review
Biodiversity Conservation
Francine H. Mejia, Valerie Ouellet, Martin A. Briggs, Stephanie M. Carlson, Roser Casas-Mulet, Mollie Chapman, Mathias J. Collins, Stephen J. Dugdale, Joseph L. Ebersole, Danielle M. Frechette, Aimee H. Fullerton, Carole-Anne Gillis, Zachary C. Johnson, Christa Kelleher, Barret L. Kurylyk, Rebecca Lave, Benjamin H. Letcher, Knut M. Myrvold, Tracie-Lynn Nadeau, Helen Neville, Herve Piegay, Kathryn A. Smith, Diego Tonolla, Christian E. Torgersen
Summary: Human activities and climate change have negative impacts on coldwater organisms in freshwater ecosystems by warming rivers and streams, increasing warm temperature events, and reducing thermal heterogeneity. It is crucial to adopt cohesive management approaches to protect cold-water refuges, considering physical, biological, and social factors. Current policies for protecting thermally sensitive species include designating cold-water habitats, restricting fishing during warm periods, and implementing temperature standards or guidelines. However, these policies lack coordination and Indigenous peoples' input. We propose managing cold-water refuges as distinct operational landscape units, integrating science and management to prioritize actions and implement adaptive practices.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Tyler J. Hoecker, Sean A. Parks, Meade Krosby, Solomon Z. Dobrowski
Summary: About two thirds of coniferous forest in the western United States are projected to be exposed to changes in fire frequency, burn severity, and productivity under a 2 °C increase scenario. Increased fire resistance could reduce burn severity in many of these forests. Changes in wildfire frequency and severity are altering conifer forests, posing threats to biodiversity and natural climate solutions.
COMMUNICATIONS EARTH & ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
John D. J. Clare, Perry de Valpine, Diana A. Moanga, Morgan W. Tingley, Steven R. Beissinger
Summary: Correlative species distribution models are commonly used to study past and future changes in species distribution. However, these models often make restrictive assumptions about forecast uncertainty and show significant differences in predictions. Therefore, we recommend that researchers prioritize characterizing forecast uncertainty when making long-term predictions instead of seeking a single best guess.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Robin Rank, Marco Maneta, Philip Higuera, Zachary Holden, Solomon Dobrowski
Summary: Forests are at increasing risk due to drought and heat stress caused by climate change. Studying the effects of environmental variables on seedling survival and forest regeneration potential can help predict future forest distribution.
FRONTIERS IN FORESTS AND GLOBAL CHANGE
(2022)
