I don’t know if you’ve heard but there’s a meeting taking place in Copenhagen this week. It’s about climate change.
Of course you know about it - newspapers, TV channels, radio stations and the internet have been abuzz with excitement about this meeting of the world leaders to try and hammer out a deal on carbon emissions. There has been more media coverage on climate change in the run up to Copenhagen than ever before, and this week it will reach fever pitch.
There are those who believe this is our last chance to save the planet, while others think it will simply create a massive spike in emissions of pointless hot air. If you want to follow the issue from the point of view of the RSPB then pop along to our climate blog which will be updated throughout the Copenhagen talks by our team there.
But whatever your opinion of the talks are, and whatever they achieve, let’s just remind ourselves of devastating impact climate change threatens to have on our wildlife.
Increase in global temperatures will displace animals from their natural habitats. As birds’ natural ranges move further north their populations will be squeezed into ever smaller habitats. Sea level rises threaten important coastal wetlands which support all kind of creatures, droughts will take their toll on many species while loss of the polar ice caps will destroy entire landscapes which polar bears, walruses, snowy owls any many others depend on.
Don’t listen to the growing number of misguided climate naysayers. This isn’t doomsday prophesising – it’s already starting to happen.
Marine researchers have discovered that rises in sea temperatures have resulted in a 70 per cent reduction in zooplankton in the North East Atlantic. Sandeel larvae are dependent on plankton and the effects of the loss of their food can be seen right up the chain to seabirds like Atlantic terns whose numbers have seen worrying declines in recent years.
RSPB scientists have found that warm summers have had an impact on cranefly numbers – and this is turn is affecting populations of birds which rely on them for food. Average increase in temperatures has resulted in cranefly larvae in peatland soil failing to reach maturity, resulting in a decline in golden plovers in the Peak District. Climate modelling suggests that this will result in localised extinctions of the bird by the end of the century.
There are plenty more examples like these. This is the beginning of a road which will end in mass extinctions and loss of biodiversity if we don’t change lanes now. So whatever happens in Copenhagen over the next fortnight, we need to do everything we can to make sure we’re steering in the right direction.