"Another study just released shows that climate belts and ecosystems
are migrating."
Does it Harry? Let's look at your link:
"The research team, which included researchers from the Carnegie
Institution, Stanford University, the California Academy of Sciences,
and the University of California, Berkeley, combined data on current
climate and temperature gradients worldwide with climate model
projections for the next century to calculate the "temperature velocity"
for different regions of the world."
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-12/ci-ccp122109.php
So it actually shows what climate models predict. The same "climate
models" shown to be unable to accurately predict past known
climate and continue to diverge from observable reality. But I'm sure
they'll be right here;-)
Climate change has always occurred (as geological records show),
regional climate variations happen even faster. Neither is evidence for
AGW.
Merry Xmas anyway Harry, I hope the snow hasn't destroyed any of
your plans. I look forward to the followup article on the effect the
post Copenhagen temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere has had
on the Mets predictions for 2009 being one of the hottest on record;-)
It’s been much hotter on earth than it is now. Here’s a recent study describing one such period. The warming then was NOT human-caused we can be sure.
To read the whole article you need a subscription or pay a fee.
Another study just released shows that climate belts and ecosystems are migrating. Former lowland or low lattitude ecosystems are now expanding: upward in elevation or toward the poles. This will put heavy pressure on species that are specialists in survival in tundra, taiga and alpine habitats. That affects animals from the polar bear to the marmot to various ptarmigan.
I’ve blogged before about animals and plants altering their location and behavior in concert with the changing climate. They don’t bother to belabor data points or wait for some conference to tell them what to do. Wildlife plays the survival game very day and they must shift with the change or lose out.
The study found that in flat areas species may be moving toward the polar regions at a rate of one kilometer per year. The study estimates that only 10% of today’s parks and wildlife reserves will maintain their current ecosystems over the next century. That means many plants and animals seeking survival will inevitably clash with man’s use of much of the planet.
