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Alina writes about the affect climate change has had on animals that specifically live in cold climates, even if those climates are far from where people live.
By Alina
Published December 13, 2024
Cold habitats are crucial to survival for an animal living in cold areas. However, many things that we rely on to live have caused global warming to become a greater problem in our world. This global warming might threaten our lives less, but it has started to affect animals. Some of the most affected areas are areas that are cold and have an icy and snowy environment. But, due to the immense amount of climate change, much of the ice and snow is melting, leaving no space for animals there to rest or take shelter. Many species are decreasing in number or even becoming extinct due to climate change.
The Antarctic continent is warming altogether, but the Antarctic Peninsula is warming quicker than any other place in the Southern Hemisphere. This rapid warming has caused sea ice along the western Antarctic Peninsula to minimize, and the sea-ice season to shorten. This reduced amount of sea ice is threatening Emperor penguin chicks and adults. When sea ice breaks apart before the chicks have matured and grown into their waterproof feathers, they are swept into the ocean and will likely die. For penguins that live in the Southern Ocean, climate change still has a substantial impact on their survival.
Ivory gulls are almost entirely reliant on sea ice and glaciers for nesting and food foraging. These birds feed on fish and shellfish that thrive on the edges of the ice, and the remains of seals left by polar bears. Other things that are threatening the Ivory Gulls are illegal hunting, and disruption from diamond mining in the Canadian Arctic. The main threat is climate change due to the ice melting and taking away their homes and food sources.
Recently Finland’s tremendously warm winter has produced lesser amounts of snow and ice determining the arrival of a new generation of Saimaa Ringed seal pups. Saimaa Ringed seals typically give birth in late February or early March in lairs built into snowdrifts. These lairs provide protection from predators and cold. Without lairs to protect them up to half of them might not survive. Saimaa Ringed Seals are one of the most rare seals, with an estimated population of 400 individuals. Climate change is one of the biggest threats to the species.
These are just a few of the animals living in the Arctic that are threatened by climate change. We should try to stop climate change before these important animals go extinct.
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