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Climate change: Big changes for big mammals
Jan 23rd
in mammal responses to climate change
If you were a shrew snuffling around a North American forest, you would be 27 times less likely to respond to climate change than if you were a moose grazing nearby.
That is just one of the findings of a new University of Colorado Boulder assessment led by Assistant Professor Christy McCain that looked at more than 1,000 different scientific studies on North American mammal responses to human-caused climate change. The CU-Boulder team eventually selected 140 scientific papers containing population responses from 73 North American mammal species for their analysis.
The studies assessed by the team examined seven different responses to climate change by individual mammal species: local extinctions of species known as extirpations, range contractions, range shifts, changes in abundance, seasonal responses, body size and genetic diversity. The researchers used statistical models to uncover whether the responses of the 73 mammals to a changing climate were related to aspects of their physiology and behavior or the location of the study population.
The analysis showed only 52 percent of the mammal species responded as expected to climate change, while 7 percent responded the opposite of expectations and the remaining 41 percent had no detectable response. The two main traits tied to climate change responses in the CU-Boulder study were large mammal body size and restricted times during a 24-hour day when particular mammal species are active, she said.
A paper on the study by McCain and former CU-Boulder postdoctoral fellow Sarah King was published online Jan. 22 in the journal Global Change Biology. The National Science Foundation funded the study. King is currently a research associate at Colorado State University.
While body size was by far the best predictor for response to climate change — almost all of the largest mammals responded negatively — the new study also showed that mammals active only during the day or only at night were twice as likely to respond to climate change as mammals that had flexible activity times, she said.
“This is the first time anyone has identified specific traits that tell us which mammals are responding to climate change and which are not,” said McCain of CU-Boulder’s ecology and evolutionary biology department.
McCain said she and King were surprised by some of the findings. “Overall the study suggests our large, charismatic fauna — animals like foxes, elk, reindeer and bighorn sheep — may be at more risk from climate change,” she said. “The thinking that all animals will respond similarly and uniformly to temperature change is clearly not the case.”
The researchers also found that species with higher latitudinal and elevation ranges, like polar bears, American pikas and shadow chipmunks, were more likely to respond to climate change than mammals living lower in latitude and elevation. The ability of mammals to hibernate, burrow and nest was not a good predictor of whether a species responded to climate change or not. American pikas have been extirpated from some of their previously occupied sites in the West, as have shadow chipmunks, which are in decline in California’s Yosemite National Park.
One of the most intriguing study findings was that some small mammals may shelter from climate change by using a wider array of “micro-climates” available in the vegetation and soil, she said. McCain compared the findings with the events at the K-T boundary 66 million years ago when an asteroid smacked Earth, drastically changing the climate and killing off the big dinosaurs but sparing many of the small mammals that found suitable shelter underground to protect them from the cataclysmic event.
“I think the most fascinating thing about our study is that there may be certain traits like body size and activity behaviors that allow some smaller mammals to expand the range of temperature and humidity available to them,” said McCain, also a curator of vertebrate zoology at the University of Colorado Museum of Natural History. “These areas and conditions are not available to bigger mammals that live above the vegetation and experience only ambient temperatures.”
The new study builds on a growing body of global information documenting the shifting behaviors and environments of organisms like flowers, butterflies and birds in response to a warming world, said McCain.
“If we can determine which mammals are responding to climate change and the ones that are at risk of disappearing, then we can tailor conservation efforts more toward those individual species,” said McCain. “Hopefully, this potential loss or decline of our national iconic mammals will spur more people to curb climate impacts by reducing overuse of fossil fuels.”
For more information on the ecology and evolutionary biology department visit http://ebio.colorado.edu. For more information on the University of Colorado Museum of Natural History visit http://cumuseum-archive.colorado.edu/About/directory.html.
More assistance for flood victims
Jan 6th
Long-Term Flood Recovery Group of Boulder County is Now Accepting Requests for Assistance
Group is taking information about flood-affected residents with unmet needs
Boulder County, Colo. – The Long-Term Flood Recovery Group (LTFRG) has opened a phone line and website for anyone in Boulder or Broomfield counties seeking assistance related to unmet needs from September’s flood. Residents needing help are encouraged to fill out the very short contact form on the website or call the hotline number to leave a brief message. Volunteer members of the group will be returning residents’ messages to do an initial intake interview which will place residents in group’s system. Case managers will be assigned over the next several weeks to residents in need and act as a guide to available resources in the county and work with residents to develop a recovery plan. The LTFRG is volunteer-based and is in a start-up phase, so patience is requested of the community while the process is developed and streamlined.
The LTFRG is charged with managing and distributing the Foothills Flood Relief Fund and also is working to secure additional donations. Donations can be made to the Fund which is housed at Foothills United Way, atwww.unitedwayfoothills.org.
The Long-Term Flood Recovery Group (LTFRG) has launched a website, at www.BoCoFloodRecovery.org, a phone number (303-895-3429) and email address (floodrecovery@unitedwayfoothills.org) for flood survivors to access and request assistance.
As the rebuilding and recovery phase proceeds, people in our community will need many resources, not all of which will be financial. The LTFRG will identify continuing needs for assistance and the process for allocating resources to ensure the long-term recovery of our whole community. Non-financial resources may include donations of critical products, volunteer construction crews, housing re-construction and repair assistance and supporting community visioning and planning processes. Ultimately, the goal is to support as many people who were affected by the September floods as possible.
The LTFRG is actively seeking volunteers for case managers and hotline responders. To sign up to volunteer, please visit http://volunteer.unitedwayfoothills.org/.
Boulder County Flood Recovery Center to Relocate Jan. 6th
Jan 3rd
The center will also house the Flood Rebuilding & Permit Information Center (formally at Land Use offices)
Boulder County, Colo. – The Flood Recovery Center is moving to its own space on Monday, Jan. 6. This center is designed to provide services to property owners and residents of unincorporated Boulder County impacted by the unprecedented flooding events of September 2013.
The Flood Recovery Center will house the Flood Rebuilding & Permit Information Center, as well as teams from finance, housing and human services, Boulder County Commissioners’ office and transportation. This shared space will allow residents to access multiple county departments and resources in one location.
What: Flood Recovery Center and Flood Rebuilding & Permit Information Center
When: Jan. 6, hours are 10 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Monday-Friday
Where: Rembrandt Yard, 1301 Spruce Street (Garden Level), Boulder
Contact: floodrecovery@bouldercounty.org, 303-441-1705
Flood-impacted residents of unincorporated Boulder County who have questions about the rebuilding process are encouraged to stop by the Flood Rebuilding & Permit Information Center to speak with a staff member.
Public parking is available at Boulder County Courthouse lot, and City of Boulder parking garage vouchers are available upon check-in at the Center.
Questions that residents may have include:
- My private residential bridge/culvert/driveway was destroyed by the flood, how do I begin repairs?
- I’m unsure about the status of my septic system, how do I know if the system is still working properly?
- What are the floodplain/floodway regulations and how do they affect my property?
- Do I need to have a structural engineer to inspect the safety of my home?
- Where can I go to get case management services to help me with ongoing recovery?
- How can I get connected with other people in my neighborhood, to get information on a more regular basis?
Visit www.BoulderCountyFlood.org for rebuilding resources and more information on flood recovery.