Global Warming Effects

1. Global Warming Effects Manish Semwal

2. The 10 warmest years since 1000 AD: • 2005 • 2009 • 1998 • 4. 2007 • 5. 2002 • 6. 2006 • 7. 2003 • 8. 2004 • 9. 2001 • 10. 2008 (warmest La Niña year on record) Source: NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies

3. Signs of warming are everywhere Parmesan & Yohe. 2003. A globally coherent fingerprint of climate change impacts across natural systems. Nature 421:37-42.

4. Global Change and Effects on Terrestrial Ecosystem Introduction • Temperature, precipitation, latitude and altitude all determine distribution of major terrestrial ecosystems (biomes). • Plants found within the different biomes are influenced by soil type, water shed conditions and amount of sun. • Specific combinations of temperatures and precipitation ensure the survival and thriving of plants within a given environment (known as Climate space).

5. Major Terrestrial Biomes • Geographic distribution of biomes are dependent on temperature, precipitation, altitude and latitude • Weather patterns dictate the type of plants that will dominate an ecosystem faculty.southwest.tn.edu/. ../ES%20%20we16.jpg

6. Southeast Asia Tropical Rainforest Monsoons role • SE Asia has a tropical wet climate which is influenced by ocean wind systems originating in the Indian Ocean and China Sea • 2 monsoon seasons: • Northeast monsoons (Oct. – Feb) – bring heavy rains to Eastern side of the islands • Southwest monsoons (April – Aug) – more powerful of the two seasons – brings heavy rainfall to the western side of the islands – Eastern side of islands dry – but windy (due to rain shadow) • Change in monsoon cycle bring heavy consequences • Ex. 1992 – 1993 – logging degraded primary foresting making it vulnerable to fires. A drought brought on by El Nino created devastating fires destroying 27,000 km2 of acreage. • In 1998 the same type of thing happened again when El Nino created a weak monsoon season – destroying many plant and animal species.

7. Succession and Climax Forests • Primary succession - How temperate forests first emerged • As forests continue to grow – become more diverse • in both plant and animal life • Simple plants unable to compete – live in the shade of larger plants • Saplings unable to develop due to shade - slowly die out (Birch, Aspen) – gives rise to middle stage succession • Shade tolerant plants emerge (Maple, Hemlock) and dominate forests – now have a climax forest

8. Secondary Succession • Secondary succession occurs quicker than primary succession (soils already there) • Exception to this – land cleared for development and agriculture • Temperate forests dominate because of their resistance to fires • Less resistant trees eventually die off – leaving the evergreens still standing • Fires promote evergreen growth by busting seed coats open and scattering them in the soil • Deciduous forest devastated by fires • Secondary succession only way new forest will dominate people.eku.edu/ritchisong/ secondarysuccession

9. Pollination • pollination is a crucial stage in the reproduction of most flowering plants, and pollinating animals are essential for transferring genes within and among populations of wild plant species

10. Phenology: The study of recurring biological events and their relationship to climate. It is determined that plants bloomed seven days earlier on average than they did in last year

11. D.G. Nielsen, Ohio State University D.G. Nielsen, Ohio State University Black vine weevil now emerging 2-3 weeks earlier than in 1970 Gina Penny

12. In this century, the range of 23 of 35 European butterfly species shifted north 35-240 km Argynnispaphia Parmesan et al. 1999. Nature 399:579-583

13. Phenology, Communities, and Ecosystems Morisette et al. 2009. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 5(7):253-260

14. Constrained life-cycle Hatch  cocoon Winter April May June --- Sept One generation each year Feeds on previous-year needles during a short window of time

15. Insect phenology manipulated relative to natural host phenology Control bioassay: Natural hatch Advanced bioassays Delayed bioassays Winter March April May June Sept

16. The largest recorded bark beetle outbreak in human history in northern British Columbia where winters used to be too cold for the beetles to survive. http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfp Dezene Huber, UNBC http://www.garna.org/

17. Plant / pollinator interactions “A few studies have shown that climate warming may generate temporal mismatches among mutualistic partners. …their demographic consequences are largely unknown.” Heglandet al. 2009. How does climate warming affect plant-pollinator interactions? Ecology Letters 12:184-195.

18. Global warming and Human Health • Infectious diseases can be carried by many different organisms, among them are ticks, flies and mosquitoes. • When the climate becomes warmer such organisms called vectors such as ticks, flies and mosquitoes can breed easier in the warmer wetter climates. • As climate change begins to affect our planet to a greater extent the infectious disease carrying organisms will be able to reach higher altitudes and will have a longer season of breeding, increasing the likelihood of a human being in contact with the disease • Also, as the climate warms the amount of algae and fish that produce toxins poisonous to humans will increase

19. The infectious diseases • Malaria can affect 45% of the world’s population today but if global warming continues at the rate that it is progressing, that number could change to be 60% of the world’s population

20. Human Health and Extreme Weather Patterns • During global warming there is a potential for an increase in the number of heat related deaths as there is a potential for an increase in the number of extremely hot days • Extreme heat can bring about heat cramps due to a lack of water which can lead to heat stroke which can then lead to organ failure and even death • The elderly and the very young are particularly susceptible to extreme climates • A study done in Canada suggests that the number of people who would die heat related deaths would increase from 70 annually to 240-1140 people by 2050, and that only in the city of Montreal

21. Top 10 Things You can do to stop Global Warming • 10.Plant a couple of additional trees around your home.CO2 reduction = 20 lbs/year • 9.Use a push mower to cut your lawn instead of a power mower.CO2 reduction = 80 lbs/year • 8.Replace your home’s refrigerator with a high-efficiency model.CO2 reduction = 220 lbs/year • 7.Buy food or other products with reusable or recyclable packaging instead of non-recyclable packaging.CO2 reduction=230 lbs/year • 6.Replace your washing machine with a low-energy, low-water-use machine.CO2 reduction = 440 lbs/year

22. Top 10 Things You can do to stop Global Warming • 5.  Install a solar thermal system to help provide your hot water.CO2 reduction = 720 lbs/year • 4.  Recycle all of your homes waste: newsprint, cardboard, glass and metal.CO2 reduction = 850 lbs/year • 3.Leave your car at home two days a week (walk, bike or take public transportation to work instead).CO2 reduction = 1,590 lbs/year • 2.  Insulate your home, tune up your furnace, and install energy efficient shower heads.CO2 reductions = 2,480 lbs/year • 1.Purchase a fuel efficient car (rated up to 32 mpg or more) to replace your most frequently used automobile.

23. Bibliography • Prentice, C.I., Guiot, J., Huntley, B., Jolly D. and Cheddadi, R., 1996, Reconstructing biomes from palaeoecological data: a general method and its application to European pollen data at 0 and 6 ka. Climate Dynamics 12:185-194. • "Rainforests", http://passporttoknowledge.com/rainforest/GEOsystem/Maps/seasia.htm, (3/18/02) • taggart.glg.msu.edu/isb200/fland.htm • The Greenhouse Effect and Climate Change. Commonwealth of Australia 2006, Bureau of Meteorology (ABN 92 637 533 532): pp. 9 – 77. • Wing, S.L. and Boucher, L.D. 1998. Ecological aspects of the Cretaceous Flowering plant radiation. Annual Review Earth Planet. Science 26: 379 – 421