Natural ecosystems in the United States are under greater stress from climate change than at any previous time in human history, according to a new assessment by academic institutions public and private agencies. The report says these stressed ecosystems are also stressing wild plant and animal species and threatening the nation’s biodiversity.
U.S. Ecosystems Threatened by Climate Change
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Some Polar bears in the Arctic can swim more than 300 kilometers at a stretch. They depend on ice sheets which are in decline. (Mike Lockhart/USGS)
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The Spectacled Eider has declined by 96 percent at a primary breeding area in Alaska because of declining ice and warming temperatures. The species is listed as threatened. (USGS)
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These subsiding marshes in the Mississippi River Delta are important habitat for wildlife and serve as protective buffers against storms and hurricanes. (K. L. McKee/USGS)
