Work

Human-modified temperatures induce species changes: Joint attribution

Year: 2005

Type: article

Abstract: Average global surface-air temperature is increasing. Contention exists over relative contributions by natural and anthropogenic forcings. Ecological studies attribute plant and animal changes to observed warming. Until now, temperature-species connections have not been statistically attributed directly to anthropogenic climatic change. Using modeled climatic variables and observed species data, which are independent of thermometer records and paleoclimatic proxies, we demonstrate statistically significant "joint attribution," a two-step linkage: human activities contribute significantly to temperature changes and human-changed temperatures are associated with discernible changes in plant and animal traits. Additionally, our analyses provide independent testing of grid-box-scale temperature projections from a general circulation model (HadCM3).

Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0502286102

Authors: Terry L. Root, Dena P MacMynowski, Michael D. Mastrandrea, Stephen H. Schneider

Institution: Stanford University

Language: English

Topic: Climate variability and models

Subfield: Global and Planetary Change

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Climate action

Open Access status: green

Funders: U.S. Department of Energy, Winslow Foundation