New research, carried out by scientists from the Department of Biology at the University of York, reveals thatspecies have responded to climate change up to three times faster than previously assumed. Multitudes of species have moved to the poles, to places where conditions are colder, three times faster than the previously calculated rate, and they have moved to cold altitudes earlier than expected.
After the analysis ofdata on more than 2,000 animal and plant species, the research team estimates that, on average, the species have moved to higher locationsabout 12.2 meters every ten years(some species up to about 17.6 kilometers per decade). According to Chris Thomas, professor of biology and director of the project, “these changes are equivalent to a displacement of animals and plants – away from the equator – around 20 centimeters per hour, for each hour of the day, for each day of the current year “. This phenomenon has been happening for the last 40 years and will continue, at least, for the rest of this century, according to the expert’s estimation.
The study, published inScience, shows for the first time thatspecies have advanced the most in regions that have experienced the most marked warming. Study co-author Dr. I-Ching Chen, currently a researcher at the Academia Sinica in Taiwan, states that “global warming is forcing animal and plant species to move toward the poles and higher. We have shown for the first time that the number of species that have changed situation in a given location is correlated with the speed with which the climate has changed in that region. “
The researchers put together all known studies on how species have changed location and carried out a ‘meta-analysis’. The study took into account the latitudinal and altitudinal range of changes around the world, but most of the available data was from Europe and North America. Among the species considered,research includes birds, mammals, reptiles, insects, spiders, and other invertebrates and plants.
Some species have moved much more slowly than expected, others have not moved, and some have even regressed. In contrast, other species have moved widely and rapidly, perhaps due to being more sensitive to particular components of climate change or due to other changes in the environment. For example, the bastard nightingale, a small brown bird, moved to the north of Great Britain about 150 kilometers in the same period, while the Soteño bunting retreated 120 kilometers to the south.
