IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON ANIMALS AND PLANTS
Definitions
● Weather: combination of day-to-day/short-term variations in temperature, humidity,
precipitation, wind, cloudiness and other atmospheric conditions occurring at a specific
place and time
● Climate: long-term average weather patterns; may be measured at many different
geographic scales (local, regional, or global)
● Climate change: large-scale, long-term shift in average weather patterns or average
temperatures; result of natural factors/processes or persistent anthropogenic changes in
composition of atmosphere
● Global warming: overall warming of the planet (long-term increase in Earth’s average
surface temperature; mainly caused by increased concentration of greenhouse gases in
atmosphere)
● Biome: global-scale biogeographic region characterised by distinctive climate, soil
conditions and dominant species
● Biodiversity: number, variety and variability of living organisms
○ Diversity within species (genetic), between species (species) and of ecosystems
(ecosystem)
● Endemic species: species unique to a particular place
● Ecosystem: a biological community and all of the abiotic factors influencing that
community
● Food chain: sequence of organisms, each serving as a source of energy for the next
● Food web: complex network of many interconnected food chains
● Habitat: place/type of place where an organism or population of organisms lives
● Ecological niche: total way of life, or role of a species in an ecosystem (includes
environmental factors that a species needs in order to grow, survive and reproduce in an
ecosystem)
Greenhouse effect
● Natural atmospheric process that is essential to keeping the Earth’s surface warm
(a) As solar energy (shortwave radiation) from the sun hits Earth, most of it is
absorbed
(b) Subsequently, energy is re-released from the Earth’s warmed surface as
longwave radiation (infrared)
(c) Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere absorb and redirect some of this energy
downward, keeping heat near Earth’s surface
(d) Difference between incoming shortwave radiation and outgoing longwave
radiation defines net radiation and determines surface temperatures (increased
net radiation leads to increased surface temperature)
● Enhanced greenhouse effect: concentrations of greenhouse gases in atmosphere
increases -> more longwave radiation redirected downwards; less outgoing longwave
radiation -> increase in net radiation and surface temperatures
Copyright © 2019 tonyndr
,Carbon cycle
(a) Uptake of carbon dioxide (and incorporation into sugar molecules) via photosynthesis in
plants/marine phytoplankton
(b) Release of carbon dioxide during respiration
(c) Slow decay of plants and animals under high temperature and pressure traps carbon in
fossil fuels
(d) Large amounts of carbon are locked up as calcium carbonate (used to build shells and
skeletons of marine organisms)
(e) Carbon sinks are natural systems that absorb and store carbon dioxide (e.g. atmosphere,
ocean, soil and forests)
Trends in carbon dioxide concentration
● Carbon dioxide accounts for 76% of our greenhouse gas output (methane accounts for
14%)
● About half of carbon dioxide emitted by human activities is absorbed by carbon sinks,
while the rest remains in the atmosphere (estimated atmospheric lifetime from 100-300
years)
● Keeling curve: a graph which plots the ongoing change in carbon dioxide concentration
in Earth’s atmosphere since 1958
○ Shows that carbon dioxide concentrations have been increasing steadily and
more recently at a faster rate each year
○ Annual oscillations in carbon dioxide concentration reflects seasonal changes in
photosynthesis and respiration (when respiration predominates from late fall
through spring, carbon dioxide concentrations rise; when photosynthesis
predominates from late spring through early fall, carbon dioxide levels fall)
Anthropogenic factors of climate change
● Increased emission of greenhouse gases (e.g. CO2, CH4) caused by human activities
(1) Burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil and natural gas)
● Main contributor to carbon dioxide emissions
● Increase in energy usage: combustion of fossil fuels to generate electricity, transport
people and goods and for industrial processes
● Methane is also produced during extraction, production, storage, transportation and
combustion of fossil fuels
(2) Deforestation
● Permanent clearing of forests for agricultural activities (crop cultivation, grazing land,
livestock farming
● Removes important carbon sinks
● Cutting down and burning of forests releases carbon stored in trees into atmosphere
● Soil degradation produces carbon dioxide and methane
(3) Agriculture and food choices
● One of the primary sources of methane emission
(a) Livestock farming
● Increased meat consumption
● Methane is produced (1) during enteric fermentation in ruminant livestock and (2) when
animal manure is stored or managed in lagoons/holding tanks
Copyright © 2019 tonyndr
, ● Requires substantial deforestation to provide land to grow crops for animal feed and for
grazing (free-range animal production)
● Further emissions of greenhouse gases during meat processing, transportation and
decomposition of wasted food
(b) Rice cultivation
● Warm, waterlogged soil of rice paddies blocks oxygen from entering soil and this
provides ideal conditions for bacteria to decompose organic material and produce
methane in a process known as methanogenesis
(4) Others
● Landfill waste from residential, commercial and industrial activities (decomposition of
waste in the absence of oxygen produced methane)
Effects of climate change
(A) The Environment
(1) Melting of polar ice caps
● Polar ice caps: ice that covers large areas of Earth’s north and South poles
○ Sea ice (frozen salty ocean water)
○ Ice sheets/continental glacier (mass of glacier ice that is constantly moving under
its own weight and covers the land surrounding it; form in areas where snow falls
in winter but does not melt entirely over summer; contain > 99% of Earth’s
freshwater)
(a) Rising sea levels
● Melting of ice sheets causes extra water to enter the ocean, increasing sea level
(b) Long term decline in freshwater resources
● Ice sheets melt into the sea, which turns freshwater into seawater, decreasing water
availability
(c) Accelerated warming from albedo
● Sea ice is white and reflects most of the sunlight that hits its surface back into space
● When sea ice melts due to warmer climate, it exposes dark, open waters -> ocean surface
absorbs solar energy instead
● Loss of polar reflectivity (albedo) sets off positive feedback loop (ice loss leads to further
warming of ocean surface, leading to more ice loss)
(d) Severe threats to polar communities
● Melting sea ice can no longer insulate water beneath it
○ Water becomes too cold to support life forms such as algae, invertebrates and
fish
● Loss of breeding and hunting grounds (sea ice) for marine animals and birds
○ Polar bear unable to reach/feed on seals
○ Decrease in available platforms for seals and walruses to rest/hunt on
○ Decreased nesting areas for birds
● Decreased release of nutrients into the water by melting of sea ice in the summer (which
stimulates growth of phytoplankton, central to the marine food web)
Copyright © 2019 tonyndr
Definitions
● Weather: combination of day-to-day/short-term variations in temperature, humidity,
precipitation, wind, cloudiness and other atmospheric conditions occurring at a specific
place and time
● Climate: long-term average weather patterns; may be measured at many different
geographic scales (local, regional, or global)
● Climate change: large-scale, long-term shift in average weather patterns or average
temperatures; result of natural factors/processes or persistent anthropogenic changes in
composition of atmosphere
● Global warming: overall warming of the planet (long-term increase in Earth’s average
surface temperature; mainly caused by increased concentration of greenhouse gases in
atmosphere)
● Biome: global-scale biogeographic region characterised by distinctive climate, soil
conditions and dominant species
● Biodiversity: number, variety and variability of living organisms
○ Diversity within species (genetic), between species (species) and of ecosystems
(ecosystem)
● Endemic species: species unique to a particular place
● Ecosystem: a biological community and all of the abiotic factors influencing that
community
● Food chain: sequence of organisms, each serving as a source of energy for the next
● Food web: complex network of many interconnected food chains
● Habitat: place/type of place where an organism or population of organisms lives
● Ecological niche: total way of life, or role of a species in an ecosystem (includes
environmental factors that a species needs in order to grow, survive and reproduce in an
ecosystem)
Greenhouse effect
● Natural atmospheric process that is essential to keeping the Earth’s surface warm
(a) As solar energy (shortwave radiation) from the sun hits Earth, most of it is
absorbed
(b) Subsequently, energy is re-released from the Earth’s warmed surface as
longwave radiation (infrared)
(c) Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere absorb and redirect some of this energy
downward, keeping heat near Earth’s surface
(d) Difference between incoming shortwave radiation and outgoing longwave
radiation defines net radiation and determines surface temperatures (increased
net radiation leads to increased surface temperature)
● Enhanced greenhouse effect: concentrations of greenhouse gases in atmosphere
increases -> more longwave radiation redirected downwards; less outgoing longwave
radiation -> increase in net radiation and surface temperatures
Copyright © 2019 tonyndr
,Carbon cycle
(a) Uptake of carbon dioxide (and incorporation into sugar molecules) via photosynthesis in
plants/marine phytoplankton
(b) Release of carbon dioxide during respiration
(c) Slow decay of plants and animals under high temperature and pressure traps carbon in
fossil fuels
(d) Large amounts of carbon are locked up as calcium carbonate (used to build shells and
skeletons of marine organisms)
(e) Carbon sinks are natural systems that absorb and store carbon dioxide (e.g. atmosphere,
ocean, soil and forests)
Trends in carbon dioxide concentration
● Carbon dioxide accounts for 76% of our greenhouse gas output (methane accounts for
14%)
● About half of carbon dioxide emitted by human activities is absorbed by carbon sinks,
while the rest remains in the atmosphere (estimated atmospheric lifetime from 100-300
years)
● Keeling curve: a graph which plots the ongoing change in carbon dioxide concentration
in Earth’s atmosphere since 1958
○ Shows that carbon dioxide concentrations have been increasing steadily and
more recently at a faster rate each year
○ Annual oscillations in carbon dioxide concentration reflects seasonal changes in
photosynthesis and respiration (when respiration predominates from late fall
through spring, carbon dioxide concentrations rise; when photosynthesis
predominates from late spring through early fall, carbon dioxide levels fall)
Anthropogenic factors of climate change
● Increased emission of greenhouse gases (e.g. CO2, CH4) caused by human activities
(1) Burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil and natural gas)
● Main contributor to carbon dioxide emissions
● Increase in energy usage: combustion of fossil fuels to generate electricity, transport
people and goods and for industrial processes
● Methane is also produced during extraction, production, storage, transportation and
combustion of fossil fuels
(2) Deforestation
● Permanent clearing of forests for agricultural activities (crop cultivation, grazing land,
livestock farming
● Removes important carbon sinks
● Cutting down and burning of forests releases carbon stored in trees into atmosphere
● Soil degradation produces carbon dioxide and methane
(3) Agriculture and food choices
● One of the primary sources of methane emission
(a) Livestock farming
● Increased meat consumption
● Methane is produced (1) during enteric fermentation in ruminant livestock and (2) when
animal manure is stored or managed in lagoons/holding tanks
Copyright © 2019 tonyndr
, ● Requires substantial deforestation to provide land to grow crops for animal feed and for
grazing (free-range animal production)
● Further emissions of greenhouse gases during meat processing, transportation and
decomposition of wasted food
(b) Rice cultivation
● Warm, waterlogged soil of rice paddies blocks oxygen from entering soil and this
provides ideal conditions for bacteria to decompose organic material and produce
methane in a process known as methanogenesis
(4) Others
● Landfill waste from residential, commercial and industrial activities (decomposition of
waste in the absence of oxygen produced methane)
Effects of climate change
(A) The Environment
(1) Melting of polar ice caps
● Polar ice caps: ice that covers large areas of Earth’s north and South poles
○ Sea ice (frozen salty ocean water)
○ Ice sheets/continental glacier (mass of glacier ice that is constantly moving under
its own weight and covers the land surrounding it; form in areas where snow falls
in winter but does not melt entirely over summer; contain > 99% of Earth’s
freshwater)
(a) Rising sea levels
● Melting of ice sheets causes extra water to enter the ocean, increasing sea level
(b) Long term decline in freshwater resources
● Ice sheets melt into the sea, which turns freshwater into seawater, decreasing water
availability
(c) Accelerated warming from albedo
● Sea ice is white and reflects most of the sunlight that hits its surface back into space
● When sea ice melts due to warmer climate, it exposes dark, open waters -> ocean surface
absorbs solar energy instead
● Loss of polar reflectivity (albedo) sets off positive feedback loop (ice loss leads to further
warming of ocean surface, leading to more ice loss)
(d) Severe threats to polar communities
● Melting sea ice can no longer insulate water beneath it
○ Water becomes too cold to support life forms such as algae, invertebrates and
fish
● Loss of breeding and hunting grounds (sea ice) for marine animals and birds
○ Polar bear unable to reach/feed on seals
○ Decrease in available platforms for seals and walruses to rest/hunt on
○ Decreased nesting areas for birds
● Decreased release of nutrients into the water by melting of sea ice in the summer (which
stimulates growth of phytoplankton, central to the marine food web)
Copyright © 2019 tonyndr
