The Arctic Fox, Alopex lagopus, is considered to be one of the first mammals to have colonized Sweden and Finland after the last Ice Age. Due to their thick fur, large fat reserves, specialized circulatory systems that help them retain heat, and their ability to lower their metabolic rate to endure periods of starvation make them the perfect candidate to live in the two coldest habitats in the world—the Arctic tundra and the frozen sea. These habitats are found in Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Russia, and Scandinavia. According to worldwildlife.org, temperatures in the Arctic are rising twice as fast as the rest of the world (1). Climate change is believed to affect the Arctic Fox population in three important ways—habitat loss, changes in prey abundance, and increased competition with red foxes.
Out of the three, habitat loss is considered to be the largest threat to the Arctic Fox population. Due to rising temperatures, sea ice is not as abundant and new plant species are beginning to emerge. Sea ice is important to the Arctic Fox population because they rely on the extra space to find food and there are fewer predators (2). Because the sea ice habitat provides important winter food resources for the Arctic foxes, especially in low lemming population years, the loss of the sea-ice habitat is likely to result in lower winter survival and reproductive success for Arctic fox population. Due to the decrease in food resources, Arctic Foxes may start to wander into human settlements in search of food which will increase the chance of foxes being killed by human inhabitants. A decrease in food resources and hunting grounds is not the only issue with the loss of sea ice habitats. According to the Species Survival Commission, as ...
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...ratures are converting the tundra to shrub-lands which are favored by the red fox As the Red Foxes are moving northward to a more favorable habitat, the Arctic Foxes retreat from the southern edge of the tundra. This has created competition between the two species but biologists are unsure whether the loss of arctic fox territory was due to direct competition or if they were indirectly competing for the same food. However, it is very clear that the presence of the Red Fox population has had a negative effect on the Arctic Fox population.
Works Cited
1. http://worldwildlife.org/species/arctic-fox
2. http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2008/jul/15/climatechange.wildlife
3. http://cmsdata.iucn.org/downloads/fact_sheet_red_list_arctic_foxes.pdf
4. http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/climate_law_institute/the_arctic_meltdown/slideshow_text/arctic_fox.html
Williams, C. T., Goropashnaya, A. V., Buck, C. L., Fedorov, V. B., Kohl, F., Lee, T. N., and Barnes, B. M. (2011). Hibernating above the permafrost: effects of ambient temperature and season on expression of metabolic genes in liver and brown adipose tissue of arctic ground squirrels. J Experi Biol. 214, 1300-1306.
Isle Royal is located fifty-six miles north of Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula. It is the largest wilderness area in Michigan (USNPS, 2014). The island is surrounded by Lake Superior, which creates a cooler temperature. This results in arctic plant species growth on the island. There are only eighteen mammal species present on the island because most mammals cannot make the trip across the frozen great lake (USNPS, 2014). The need for an ice bridge is not the only environmental factor that is stopping the migration of animals; there is also the severe cold, and also wind and fog (Vucetich, 2012). Some species such as caribou and coyote have found the island to be too intense and have gone extinct (Vucetich, 2012). Due to the harsh weather and isolation of the island, humans have never regularly lived on the island (Vucetich, 2012). Some of species that are present such as the red squirrel are becoming their own subspecies due to its separation from the mainland (USNPS, 2014). The isolation of Isle Royal is what makes it a great place to conduct research, it has very low human interaction and the species that are on the island will have been and continue to be isolated from the mainland.
A species in particular that I have researched is the red fox or Vulpes vulpes as it is known in the scientific community. The animal is native to North America, Asia and Europe where they thrive in habitats ranging from temperate deserts to boreal forests, but its range spans the entire globe (Tesky 1995). The red fox is omnivorous which means that it feeds on animals and plants equally, which, creates impacts on both types of populations within its habitat. What makes the red fox invasive is its introduction to Australia and Eastern parts of the United States, as a result of migration of Europeans t...
Unlike the maned wolf and coyote, Darwin’s fox lives in the temperate forests, especially near Chile, or any other place in South America. Some species live on Nahuelbuta National Park or in Chiloe Island. Alike the coyote and maned wolf, Darwin’s fox is omnivorous and a secondary consumer. It eats mammals, invertebrates, reptiles and birds as well as fruits. Because of it’s small size, Darwin’s fox is easier to get caught by predators such as wild and domesticated dogs as well as pumas.
The Arctic region is home to a variety of valuable animals and plants, including polar bear, seal, and so on. The ecosystem of the Arctic region is fragile because these animals are evolved to live in extreme conditions. With the climate change, many animals are endangered. Ice is the habitat of polar animals because they have to rely on sea ices for resting, food, and reproduction. With the climate change and the decrease of sea ice, the number of polar animals is decreasing and their health is threatened. For example, the average weight of female polar bears in 1980 was about 650 pounds, but the number reduced to about 500 pounds in 2004 (Djoghlaf 15). The earlier breakup and later condensation of sea ice shortens the hunting season of polar bears. Polar bears mainly feed on seals that indwell icy land. The melting ice reduces the number of seals and food intake of polar bears. In addition, polar bears are used to living in ice caves. The rising temperature causes the collapse of ice caves, which can kill baby bears. The climate change is negatively affecting the biodiversity in the region and will definitely harm the ecosystem
The climate of the tundra is characterized by harsh winters. The average temperature in the tundra area is about –27 degrees. But what is even worse are the long night. At nights the lowest temperture recorded was –67.36 degrees. There are even times in the year when the sun doesn’t come up for days. In the tundra we have little snow and even less rainfall. The rainfall is about a quarter inch in a yearly rainfall. Even though the tundra’s winters are long a harsh there summers are the shortest season of all. Do to the terrible weather and climate in the tundra their animals and plant life is very limited.
To begin with, the melting of polar ice caps has caused polar bears to swim long distances. According to Bryan Walsh of TIME Magazine the melting of the ice caps have caused polar bears especially the young cubs to swim longer distances which has caused a “ forty-five percent mortality rate” (Walsh). In the article Walsh, writes about a study that showed that younger cubs because of low fat and strength were more likely to die due to the long di...
In the past hundred years, the human race has expanded almost everything in the United States of America, such as our agriculture practices, the size of our cities, and the sheer amount of expansion in business and it has affected one group of animals in particular, waterfowl. Due to these advancements, the human race has caused the climate to change, and according to an research by Jennifer Reilly “Climate change is an global problem that affects all species of waterfowl and the wetlands they inhabit” (Reilly 2017). Humans have impacted the life of waterfowl in such extreme levels of magnitude, that humans have almost become part of waterfowls life. Cites have become almost refuges for geese as mentioned in the study titled Survival
Climate change is influence the health of Alaskans in a variety of ways changes in the environment and ecology are resulting in new or increase threats to water quality or quantity as well of changes in the incidence of certain human and animal conditions. Rural and indigenous communities are faced with growing concerns over economic, health and cultural impacts due to climate change related declines in the availability of plant and animals
One way that the environment impacts the animals is that the animals such as bears adapt and store their energy in the winter. This is also known as hibernating. “Animals in the mountains have also adapted to save energy during the harsh winter months.” (Cassandra Maier, Adaptations of plants and animals to mountains) When animals hibernate, they are less active during the winter, and they just sleep for most of the day. Other animals such as the goat and deer do not hibernate during the winter,
Foxes are lovely, calm, quiet creatures that always run as soon as they see humans, so this must show that they are definitely more frightened of us than we are of them. During a hunt the poor foxes are chased out of their homes even when they are only cubs and sometimes their parents and family are killed. This must be a horrible experience for them. Animals have their own rights and feelings as well as humans. We do not kill humans if they kill or eat a farmer's chicken or lambs so why should it be different for foxes.
As the world becomes continually warmer, the effect of climate change in the arctic regions becomes more intense. Within the past 50 years, arctic regions in Canada have experienced warming of 2 to 3 degrees Celsius (Fergal & Prowse, 2007). One of the most important areas in the Canadian arctic is the Cryosphere (Appendix A), which is the area consisting of season snow cover, permafrost glaciers, and sea ice (Fergal & Prowse, 2007). This area is significant because it has provided a stabilized surface for building pipelines, as well as provides access to northern communities (Fergal & Prowse, 2007).
The San Joaquin Kit fox has been listed has been listed as endangered since 1967 under the federal endangered list. San Joaquin Kit foxes are important in their ecosystem; they serve as a population control for smaller rodents the population has continued to decrease due to loss of habitat and degradation of the land caused by development. The efforts that have been made to protect this species are necessary for the species to avoid extinction. However, the efforts made to protect the species have yet to have positive results. Stricter regulations on development need to be implement, for example banning franking. If larger parcels of natural habitat are not obtain for the San Joaquin kit fox the population will not thrive and become extinct.
Climate change, or global warming, is a major issue affecting many species around the globe. Climate change can be caused by burning fossil fuels, breeding cattle that create methane, cutting down forests which absorb carbon dioxide, and the extra carbon dioxide in the atmosphere trapping the sunlight. These factors warm up the earth, and in the past century the earth has warmed by an average of about 1°. This doesn’t sound like much however on a global scale it’s huge and scientists predict a rise of up to 6°C in this century if greenhouse gasses are not cut drastically. Climate change is not just about the arctic sea ice melting, there are many other implications such as, severe storms, floods, and droughts; the sea becoming more acidic; rainforests dying, and drastic rise in sea levels. There are current strategies in place which are tackling climate change in general such as renewable energy and low carbon transport however there are also management strategies that are specific to species directly affected by climate change. When considering the species affected, many will think of the obvious species such as the polar bear and species living in cold habitats with snow and ice. This essay will address the impacts of climate change on an obvious species, the snow leopard, and a not so obvious species, sea turtles, and evaluate whether the current management of these species will be adequate to protect them in the future. It will also discuss alternative or additional management options that might help these species persist under a changing climate.
One huge impact of global warming is the change in animals’ habitats. When the earth’s temperature is increasing, it creates the change of weather conditions in a certain area, which causes some kinds of animals in this area to live with many difficulties, or sometimes those kinds of animals are forced to move to new region when they cannot handle the difficulties. The arctic fox is an example for this situation. According to the article “How Does Global Warming Affect Wildlife,” arctic foxes prefer to live in the cooler environment while their habitat is getting warmer and warmer due to global warming, so arctic foxes have to leave their own home to seek a more suitable area (National W...