Climate change represents a major threat facing wildlife and ecosystems globally, due to the close link between climate and biodiversity. As the pace of climate change accelerates, animals have become a vital source for understanding its impacts through their behavior and physical changes.
Since the earliest times, humans have relied on the observation of nature to discover weather patterns and seasonal changes. Now, scientists are turning to animals once again to understand the impact of climate change, using the Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies to collect and analyze vast amounts of data.
Animals have always had to adapt; however, those who were unable to adapt, such as the famous Dodo bird, went extinct. Furthermore, the rate of animal extinction is increasing; it is estimated to be 1,000 and 10,000 times higher than the natural extinction rate. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has revealed a 73% decline in the average size of monitored wildlife populations between 1970 and 2020. Moreover, about one-third of amphibian species face the risk of extinction, while 550 mammal species are classified as globally threatened, 235 of which are critically endangered.
While adaptable animals have a much higher chance of survival, many animals are altering their physiological makeup to cope with climate change. The most common changes are the physical appendages, such as ears, beaks, tails, and wings. Facing the global warming, living organisms are not merely changing their behavior or migrating to cooler regions, such as going towards the poles or higher altitudes, but they are also modifying these appendages to help regulate their body temperatures. In the case of wood mice, their tails have grown longer, while bird beaks are increasing in size; the wing length of mammals like bats is also increasing.
Why Do Animals Change their Appearance?
Warm-blooded animals face a particular challenge as temperatures rise, as they must maintain a constant internal body temperature to avoid heat stress or death. Hence, some species resort to increasing their body surface area to lose heat faster, which is a phenomenon described by American zoologist Joel Allen in the 19th century, known as Allen's Rule. According to this rule, animals that live in warm climates have larger body appendages compared to those living in cold regions.
Studies also indicate that the beak size of several species of Australian parrots, such as the Gang-gang cockatoos and Red-rumped parrots, has increased by 4–10% since 1871. The appendages of mammals are also increasing in size; for example, the masked shrew has seen a marked increase in both tail and leg length since 1950. Meanwhile, the wing size of the great round-leaf bat has increased by 1.64% during the same period, in order to enhance its ability to get rid of heat during flying. This phenomenon is known as shape-lifting; it serves as evidence that climate change is directly influencing animal anatomy.
Scientists have found that animal appendages have uses that go far beyond regulating body temperature. This means that scientists have focused on other reasons that may explain the changes in the animal's body shape. For example, studies have shown that the average beak size of the medium ground finch of the Galapagos has changed over time in response to the seed size, which in turn is influenced by rainfall.
This data contributes to the scientific understanding of how wildlife responds to climate change. In addition to improving our ability to predict the impacts of climate change, this will enable us to identify the species most at risk and those that require priority conservation efforts. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report also showed that we have very limited time to avoid global warming. Therefore, the best way to protect species in the future is to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
References
weforum.org
theconversation.com