Thought that global warming is a phenomenon that takes a toll only on human beings? Well, if you did, we do not blame you. Man, in all the progression he has made along time seems to have forgotten that he too is an animal himself. A lot more sociable than other animals, yes, but an animal at the end of the day. Global warming, as we know it is a phenomenon that leads to climatic changes, weather changes and ultimately to changes in the adaptability of all creatures to their surroundings. When adaptability to such conditions is not possible, it leads to changes in the very living patterns of the creatures, and in the most extreme, yet not rare conditions, leads to the death of the animal. When a large number of these animals belonging to a certain group die, it leads to the death of the group itself, in the due course of time, and this phenomenon is known as extinction. Though it is to difficult to tell about the Global warming effects on animals but this has been a topic of discussion in various forums.
A number of changes occurring among plants and animals point to unnatural climate change, many scientists say.
According to a number of scientists from all around the world, there are a great many number of changes that one learns about the living capacities of animals owing to the climatic changes that are of an unnatural kind. Here are some Global warming effects on animals:
Animals on the Land
By the latter half of the century, it is guesstimated that a large number of reindeer shall have disappeared from most of the regions that they are now seen in. They will move to other, uninhabitable lands, where they will not be able to procreate and sustain in the same manner as they have been doing for many centuries now. In what can be sure of a change due to changes in temperature and weather conditions, marmots, today, are finishing their hibernation processes three weeks faster than they were known to be doing three decades ago. Canadian red squirrels are now breeding much earlier than they normally did, almost three weeks earlier than they normally would. Red foxes are moving out of their own territories and moving north into regions that were known to be the domain of their arctic counterparts. It may seem like a small change, but over a period of time, Fowler’s toads that are normally found in the regions around North America are breeding almost a week later than they were known to do so ten years ago. The polar bears that one get to see today are a lot less healthier and are thinner than the polar bears that could be seen merely two decades ago. Global warming effects on animals are most visible on animals living close to the poles as every year we see a drastic increase in icecaps.
Animals in Water Sources
Coral reef sizes are said to increase by as much as thirty-three percent in size in the years to come in the near future. The pups of elephant seals today are a lot thinner than they were some years back owing to the fact that the food that they depended on has started migrating to regions with cooler waters. The loggerhead sea turtles are now laying their eggs a minimum of ten days earlier than they were known to fifteen years ago. The sex of Hawkill turtle hatchlings seems to be affected because of the increase that was noted in regions with increased temperatures. Nowadays, there are more female hatchlings that are being born than male. Organisms that move with the tide, like mollusks, tidal snails and rock barnacles, hat would normally be found in the warm southern waters are now moving up north.
Birds
The food habits of several songbirds have evolved due to global weather changes one such change is a number of birds not eating insects that depended on leaves with high levels of carbon dioxide for their own source of food. The eggs of the North American tree swallows are now being laid more than a week earlier than they were being laid four decades ago. The breeding pattern of the common murres have changed quite drastically with their breeding season now more than three weeks earlier than recorded ten years ago.
