Leading ecologists from our Department of Biosciences and Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre in Germany have predicted in their latest research that bird communities will change worldwide in 2080 due to climate change, largely as result of shifting their ranges.

Over the past 60 years, the global forest area has declined by 81.7 million hectares, a loss that contributed to the more than 60% decline in global forest area per capita.

A new study in Science Advances led by UMBC’s Tianle Yuan used satellite data from 2003 – 2020 to determine the effect of fuel regulations on pollution from cargo ships. 

European mountain guides are cancelling climbs up some of the most iconic peaks in the Alps, including Mont Blanc and the Matterhorn, as a series of heat waves and rapidly melting glaciers have made the routes too dangerous.

Researchers at the University of Bristol and Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre have discovered that super-eruptions occur when huge accumulations of magma deep in the Earth’s crust, formed over millions of years, move rapidly to the surface disrupting pre-existing rock.

As warming ocean temperatures threaten the existence of coral reefs, scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) have successfully used an extremely high-resolution computer simulation of ocean circulation to identify possible “thermal refugia” where these biodiverse ecosystems are more likely to survive.

The North Pacific Blob, a marine heatwave that began in late 2013 and continued through 2015, was the largest and longest-lasting marine heatwave on record.

Lakes and other freshwater systems emit large quantities of methane, which is the second most important greenhouse gas worldwide after CO2. 

With the UK reaching record temperatures this summer along with the driest conditions since 1976, ongoing concerns about food security, wildlife habitats and biodiversity, having a healthy soil system is more vital and challenging than ever before. 

A UBC Okanagan research team has created a computer modelling program to help scientists predict the effect of climate damage and eventual restoration plans on coral reefs around the globe.