Transcript Southeast
National Academy of Sciences National Academy of Engineering Institute of Medicine National Research Council Impacts in the Southeast Challenges to Everglades Restoration Everglades has shrunk due to human manipulation of the region’s water; ongoing efforts aim to restore the ecosystem. • Climate change impacts (increasing water temperature, changes in precipitation) may make restoration efforts more difficult 1850 Today Images courtesy Rodney Cammauf, National Park Service (panther); South Florida Water Management District (maps) National Academy of Sciences National Academy of Engineering Institute of Medicine National Research Council Impacts in the Southeast Sea-level Rise • Fragments barrier islands, reconfigures shorelines • May leave certain ecosystems struggling to adapt—in particular those adapted to the conditions between land and sea • Landward movement of mangroves and marshes may be inhibited by human development National Academy of Sciences National Academy of Engineering Institute of Medicine National Research Council Impacts in the Southeast Coral Reefs: Multiple Changes • Climate change is compounding other factors affecting reefs (coastal development, pollution, overfishing) • Heat stress causes coral bleaching: corals expel symbiotic algae, leaving white “bones” behind (deadly to coral if longlasting) • Ocean acidification affects marine organisms’ ability to build shells and skeletons: likely to slow or stop the growth of coral by 2100 Coral bleaching Image courtesy of NOAA. National Academy of Sciences National Academy of Engineering Institute of Medicine National Research Council Impacts in the Southeast Northward Movement of Tropical Species • Bird and butterfly watchers across the Southeast looking out for new species; some former seasonal migrants now staying year-round The rufous hummingbird has become a yearround resident in Alabama. Image courtesy Dean E. Briggins, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.