PCE - 14 Flashcards
define a species climate niche?
the specific range of climatic requirements that enables a species to survive and reproduce
what does a bioclimate envelope model help to understand?
helps to understand species climate niches across earth and how they may change
what are the 5 main steps to create a bioclimate envelope model?
1) collect records of locations
2) map current species distributions
3) use distribution to infer environmental requirements (do this by overlaying maps of environmental feature with distribution map e.g. topography, soil type, temp, rainfall)
4) predict a species distribution from its environmental requirements through statistical modelling - based upon the accurate environmental measures from step 3
5) use BEM to predict future distributions under changing climates
what are the 2 main things BEMs allows you to do?
1) allow you to define a species climatic niche
2) allow you to stimulate species distributions under present and future climates
3 reasons why understanding species climate requirements matter?
1) food production
2) human diseases
3) species extinctions
change in climate temp has affected corn crops what have they done to solve this?
developed heat tolerant strains to 32.5 degrees
what did a study show about european climates for the asian tiger mosquito?
- climate conditions were suitable in much of southern and norther Europe
- eradication programs in nothern Europe to prevent establishment is costly
how do Australian flying foxes react to change in climate temperatures?
10% die off following single day of exposure to extreme temperatures
what is the extinction risk from climate change predicted by law relationship with geographical range size?
on the basis of mid-range climate- warming scenarios for 2050 15-37% of species will be committed to extinction
what do species require to adapt to climate change?
- physiological variability in thermal tolerances of species
- species from more varied climates have broader physiological limits
what is the difference between mammals and birds thermal tolerances?
- birds have broader thermal tolerances when they are exposed to greater climate variability but mammals dont - possible behavioural or morphological adaptations may buffer physiological limits
which species did a study show to be particularly vulnerable to climate change?
tropical species
the big question is wether the rates of evolution are fast enough to cope with climate change, what is the lag equation for predicted changes?
Lag = optimal phenotype - predicted phenotype
