effects of climate change on ecosystems effects of climate change on ecosystems climate change has adversely affected terrestrial and marine ecosystems, including tundras, mangroves, coral reefs, and caves. increasing global temperature, more frequent occurrence of extreme weather, and rising sea level are examples of the most impactful effects of climate change. possible consequences of these effects include species decline and extinction, change within ecosystems, increased prevalence of invasive species, forests converting from carbon sinks to carbon sources, ocean acidification, disruption of the water cycle, and increased occurrence of natural disasters. rainforest ecosystems are rich in biodiversity. this is the gambia river in senegal's niokolo-koba national park. general the ipcc sixth assessment report (2021) projects progressively large increases in both the frequency (horizontal bars) and intensity (vertical bars) of extreme weather events, for increasing degrees of global warming. climate change is affecting terrestrial ecoregions. increasing global temperature means that ecosystems are changing; some species are being forced out of their habitats (possibly to extinction) because of changing conditions. an example is migration. due to the ever hotter weather, birds are forced to move to foreign lands. other effects of global warming include less snow fall, rising sea levels, ozone depleting and weather changes. these may influence human activities and the ecosystem. within the ipcc fourth assessment report, experts assessed the literature on the impacts of climate change on ecosystems. rosenzweig et al. (2007) concluded that over the last three decades, human-induced warming had likely had a discernible influence on many physical and biological systems (p. 81). schneider et al. (2007) concluded, with very high confidence, that regional temperature trends had already affected species and ecosystems around the world (p. 792). they also concluded that climate change would result in the extinction of many species and a reduction in the diversity of different types of ecosystems (p. 792). terrestrial ecosystems and biodiversity: with a warming of 4-5 °c, relative to 2010 levels, it is likely that global terrestrial vegetation would become a net source of carbon (schneider et al., 2007:792). with high confidence, schneider et al. (2007:788) concluded that a global mean temperature increase of around 4 °c (above the 2010–2015) by 2100 would lead to major extinctions around the world. marine ecosystems and biodiversity: with high confidence, scientists concluded that a warming of 2-3 °c above 2010 levels would result in mass mortality of coral reefs globally. in addition, several studies dealing with planktonic organisms and modelling have shown that temperature plays a transcendental role in marine microbial food webs, which may have a deep influence on the biological carbon pump of marine planktonic pelagic and mesopelagic ecosystems. freshwater ecosystems: above about a 4 °c increase in global mean temperature by 2100 (relative to 2010), scientists concluded, with high confidence, that many freshwater species would become extinct or largely endangered. biodiversity extinction studying the association between earth climate and extinctions over the past 520 million years, scientists from the university of york write, "the global temperatures predicted for the coming centuries may trigger a new 'mass extinction event', where over 50 percent of animal and plant species would be wiped out." many of the species at risk are arctic and antarctic fauna such as polar bears and emperor penguins. in the arctic, the waters of hudson bay are ice-free for three weeks longer than they were thirty years ago, affecting polar bears, which prefer to hunt on sea ice. species that rely on cold weather conditions such as gyrfalcons, and snowy owls that prey on lemmings that use the cold winter to their advantage may be negatively affected. marine invertebrates achieve peak growth at the temperatures they have adapted to, and cold-blooded animals found at high latitudes and altitudes generally grow faster to compensate for the short growing season. warmer-than-ideal conditions result in higher metabolism and consequent reductions in body size despite increased foraging, which in turn elevates the risk of predation. indeed, even a slight increase in temperature during development impairs growth efficiency and survival rate in rainbow trout. mechanistic studies have documented extinctions due to recent climate change: mclaughlin et al. documented two populations of bay checkerspot butterfly being threatened by precipitation change. parmesan states, "few studies have been conducted at a scale that encompasses an entire species" and mclaughlin et al. agreed "few mechanistic studies have linked extinctions to recent climate change." daniel botkin and other authors in one study believe that projected rates of extinction are overestimated. for "recent" extinctions, see holocene extinction. many species of freshwater and saltwater plants and animals are dependent on glacier-fed waters to ensure a cold water habitat that they have adapted to. some species of freshwater fish need cold water to survive and to reproduce, and this is especially true with salmon and cutthroat trout. reduced glacier runoff can lead to insufficient stream flow to allow these species to thrive. ocean krill, a cornerstone species, prefer cold water and are the primary food source for aquatic mammals such as the blue whale. alterations to the ocean currents, due to increased freshwater inputs from glacier melt, and the potential alterations to thermohaline circulation of the worlds oceans, may affect existing fisheries upon which humans depend as well. coral reefs and fish ecosystems like so, will be extinct if not taken care of. our carbon footprints will end our little friends if we do not take action! the white lemuroid possum, only found in the daintree mountain forests of northern queensland, may be the first mammal species to be driven extinct by global warming in australia. in 2008, the white possum has not been seen in over three years. the possums cannot survive extended temperatures over 30 °c (86 °f), which occurred in 2005. a 27-year study of the largest colony of magellanic penguins in the world, published in 2014, found that extreme weather caused by climate change is responsible for killing 7% of penguin chicks per year on average, and in some years studied climate change accounted for up to 50% of all chick deaths. since 1987, the number of breeding pairs in the colony has reduced by 24%. furthermore, climate change may disrupt ecological partnerships among interacting species, via changes on behaviour and phenology, or via climate niche mismatch. the disruption of species-species associations is a potential consequence of climate-driven movements of each individual species towards opposite directions. climate change may, thus, lead to another extinction, more silent and mostly overlooked: the extinction of species' interactions. as a consequence of the spatial decoupling of species-species associations, ecosystem services derived from biotic interactions are also at risk from climate niche mismatch. while, climate change is making abrupt changes in the ecosystem more likely, it is also intensifying human-wildlife conflict around the globe. human-wildlife conflict is defined as interactions between humans and wildlife that have harmful effects for either one or both groups. human-wildlife conflict induced by climate change has the ability to reshape ecosystems by furthering the decline and extinctions of species. these types of changes driven by climate change can threaten social-ecological systems. behaviour change rising temperatures are beginning to have a noticeable impact on birds, and butterflies nearly 160 species from 10 different zones have shifted their ranges northward by 200 km in europe and north america. the migration range of larger animals may be constrained by human development. in britain, spring butterflies are appearing an average of 6 days earlier than two decades ago. a 2002 article in nature surveyed the scientific literature to find recent changes in range or seasonal behaviour by plant and animal species. of species showing recent change, 4 out of 5 shifted their ranges towards the poles or higher altitudes, creating "refugee species". frogs were breeding, flowers blossoming and birds migrating an average 2.3 days earlier each decade; butterflies, birds and plants moving towards the poles by 6.1 km per decade. a 2005 study concludes human activity is the cause of the temperature rise and resultant changing species behaviour, and links these effects with the predictions of climate models to provide validation for them. scientists have observed that antarctic hair grass is colonizing areas of antarctica where previously their survival range was limited. climate change is leading to a mismatch between the snow camouflage of arctic animals such as snowshoe hares with the increasingly snow-free landscape. the impacts of climate change on ecosystems are becoming increasingly noticeable, with many species shifting their ranges towards the poles or higher altitudes as a result of rising temperatures, as noted in a 2021 study by parmesan and yohe in the journal earth's future (parmesan and yohe, 2021). invasive species this section is an excerpt from climate change and invasive species. buffelgrass (cenchrus ciliaris) is an invasive species throughout the world that is pushing out native species. climate change and invasive species refers to the process of the environmental destabilization caused by climate change. this environmental change facilitates the spread of invasive species — species that are not historically found in a certain region, and often bring about a negative impact to that region's native species. human-caused climate change and the rise in invasive species are directly linked to changing of ecosystems. the destabilization of climate factors in these ecosystems can lead to the creation of a more hospitable habitat for invasive species, thus allowing them to spread beyond their original geographic boundaries. this relationship is notable because climate change and invasive species are also considered by the usda to be two of the top four causes of global biodiversity loss. there are many ways to manage the impact of invasive species. prevention, early detection, climate forecasting and genetic control are some ways communities can mitigate the risks of invasive species and climate change. forests and climate change change in photosynthetic activity in northern forests 1982–2003; nasa earth observatory as the northern forests are a carbon sink, while dead forests are a major carbon source, the loss of such large areas of forest has a positive feedback on global warming. in the worst years, the carbon emission due to beetle infestation of forests in british columbia alone approaches that of an average year of forest fires in all of canada or five years worth of emissions from that country's transportation sources. research suggests that slow-growing trees only are stimulated in growth for a short period under higher co2 levels, while faster growing plants like liana benefit in the long term. in general, but especially in rainforests, this means that liana become the prevalent species; and because they decompose much faster than trees their carbon content is more quickly returned to the atmosphere. slow growing trees incorporate atmospheric carbon for decades. wildfires healthy and unhealthy forests appear to face an increased risk of forest fires because of the warming climate. the 10-year average of boreal forest burned in north america, after several decades of around 10,000 km2 (2.5 million acres), has increased steadily since 1970 to more than 28,000 km2 (7 million acres) annually. though this change may be due in part to changes in forest management practices, in the western u.s., since 1986, longer, warmer summers have resulted in a fourfold increase of major wildfires and a sixfold increase in the area of forest burned, compared to the period from 1970 to 1986. a similar increase in wildfire activity has been reported in canada from 1920 to 1999. forest fires in indonesia have dramatically increased since 1997 as well. these fires are often actively started to clear forest for agriculture. they can set fire to the large peat bogs in the region and the co₂released by these peat bog fires has been estimated, in an average year, to be 15% of the quantity of co₂ produced by fossil fuel combustion. a 2018 study found that trees grow faster due to increased carbon dioxide levels, however, the trees are also eight to twelve percent lighter and denser since 1900. the authors note, "even though a greater volume of wood is being produced today, it now contains less material than just a few decades ago."the arctic region, is particularly sensitive and warming faster than most other regions. particles of smoke can land on snow and ice, causing them to absorb sunlight that it would otherwise reflect, accelerating the warming. fires in the arctic also increase the risk of