“The warming of the earth could potentially have more far-reaching impacts on wildlife and wildlife habitat than any challenge that has come before us.”Dale Hall, Director
Photo credit: NASA -- Visible Earth
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports in their “Summary for Policymakers of the Synthesis Report of the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report” that “(w)arming of the climate system is unequivocal, as is now evident from observations of increases in global average air and ocean temperatures, widespread melting of snow and ice, and rising global average sea level.”
The Challenge
A basic biological fact is that species’ abundance and distribution are dynamic, relative to a variety of factors, including climate. As climate changes, the abundance and distribution of wildlife and fish will also change. However, in wildlife management, it is difficult to estimate with any degree of precision which species will be affected by environmental change, or exactly how. The Fish and Wildlife Service is monitoring our trust resources to see how they are affected by the changing climate.
What We're Doing
In general, Service programs are already addressing climate change. Read more about our actions.
