Lecture 23 - Climate Change - Plant and Animal Responses

Question 1

The greenhouse effect is good but the __ greenhouse effect is bad.

Answer 1

enhanced (humans have done this)

Question 2

Why is the enhanced greenhouse effect bad?

Answer 2

there is a higher concentration of gases, which warms the plant, and there is less physical space for the heat to travel back to space

Question 3

How are gases emitted back to space?

Answer 3

though long wave radiation

Question 4

Who are the main 3 culprits of the enhanced greenhouse effect?

Answer 4

1. Carbon Dioxide CO2
2. Methane CH4
3. Nitrous Oxide N2O

Question 5

Which gas is the most abundant?

Answer 5

CO2

Question 6

out of the three gases, who has the most warming potential ?

Answer 6

1. Methane CH4
2. Nitrous Oxide N2O
   - parts per billion compared to million (CO2)

Question 7

What are the human emissions of CO2?

Answer 7

1. burning of fossil fuel
2. land use change

Question 8

What does it mean by “land use change”?

Answer 8

when you cut down forests and turn them into soy bean farms - mass decomposition happens which means huge amounts of carbon is released into the air

Question 9

What are the human emissions of CH4?

Answer 9

1. agriculture waste (landfills and cow/sheep farms)
2. energy production - drilling for oil, natural gas

Question 10

What are the human emissions of NO2?

Answer 10

1. Agriculture sites aka farms
   - tons of NPK being released into soil (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium)

Question 11

From the 1970s to the 2000s, what has been the pattern of global temperatures?

Answer 11

• Some places are getting hotter faster than other areas
• The north poles are getting hotter 2x faster than any other areas

Question 12

Why is a problem that the north poles are getting hotter, faster?

Answer 12

The north pole is a tundra which is known for a short growing season so when its hotter its a longer growing season since heat is being absorbed in the ground - energy balance is off

Question 13

Besides global temperature, what else is changing?

Answer 13

1. Sea ice decreasing = sea levels rising
2. changing patterns of intensity of rain over land

Question 14

Why are rising temperatures a threat to ectotherms?

Answer 14

1. They have a threshold of heat and by going over it = less energy
2. Have to burn more calories just to stay alive which puts their main focus just on eating and not growing or reproducing

Question 15

Why are rising temperatures a threat to tree growth?

Answer 15

NPP = GPP (photosynthesis) - R (respiration)
both are increasing both respiration is increasing faster than photo which means more carbon is being released since its running through its energy

Question 16

What else is causing change?

Answer 16

Drought

Question 17

Why is drought an issue?

Answer 17

1. trees need water to grow.. leads to death
2. increase of wildfires especially in the boreal forests in Canada

Question 18

What are the consequences of animals moving up north due to climate change?

Answer 18

birds moving up north means a shift in the food web dynamic, less dispersal of seeds (could be bad if that one plant depends on the bird, wipes it out).

Question 19

Why is finding a solution for climate change, for animals and plants, hard? (not talking about lessening human impacts here)

Answer 19

each species whether tree or animal has a different response - highly unpredictable so cannot come up with one blanket solution

Question 20

What are the consequences of plants shifting north?

Answer 20

Less space and nutrients available for the trees that are already up at the top
destruction of forest structure