Over 7,000 species susceptible to climate change: Study

Times of India , Saturday, October 11, 2008
Correspondent : PTI
BARCELONA: More than 7,000 species in the world - 35 per cent of birds, 52 per cent of amphibians and 71 per cent of warm-water reef-building corals - are likely to be particularly susceptible to climate change, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has said in a study.

The IUCN, considered the world's most prestigious organ in assessing the vulnerability of species, said the report marked the first systematic assessment of species susceptibility to climate change.

The report said climate change may cause a sharp rise in the risk of extension and rate of extinction of currently threatened species.

In Japan, coral species in Ogasawara Islands and amphibians in Kagoshima and Okinawa prefectures are likely to be affected by climate change, according to the Swiss-based IUCN, the world's largest global environmental network bringing together 1,000 government and non-governmental organisations as well as volunteer scientists.

"Climate change is already happening, but conservation decision makers currently have very little guidance on which species are going to be the worst affected," Wendy Foden, an officer of the IUCN's species program, said in a statement.

The study evaluated the susceptibility to climate change of about 16,900 species - birds, amphibians and warm-water corals - by checking factors such as the ongoing global warming's impact on their food and habitats.

It found that 3,438 of the world's 9,856 bird species have at least one out of 11 traits that could make them susceptible to climate change. Albatross, penguin, petrel and shearwater families are all likely to be susceptible to climate change, it said.

 
SOURCE : Saturday, October 11, 2008
 


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