Climate Change and Landscapes
- Yellowstone Photo
- Yellowstone National Park in Montana
- Julie Larsen Maher ©WCS
Hot, dry forests, rising sea levels—environmental changes brought on by global warming take a heavy toll on wildlife and human communities that rely on any given landscape for food, water, shelter, and income. As climate change alters ecosystems, feeding grounds may become barren and summer grounds inhospitable. Species that have followed the same migration routes for millennia may find the corridors no longer provide for their needs. By anticipating various responses to global warming, we can protect critical wildlife habitat before it is too late.
As WCS scientists track the impacts of climate change on habitats around the world, they are studying how species respond, and which populations have the best chance of survival. They are seeking to create new protected areas where imperiled species can find a sanctuary from surrounding environmental stresses. They are also helping to create new economic opportunities for people whose livelihoods are tied to waning natural resources.
WCS Projects
Food, water, shelter, and the freedom to roam—these are the basic needs of wildlife. WCS-North America works to protect and interlink crucial wildlife habitats through field-based research, outreach, and policy.
Climate change is having a profound effect on the Sundarbans of Bangladesh, one of the most important sanctuaries for tropical dolphins. As sea levels in the Bay of Bengal rise with global warming, critical wildlife habitat in the adjacent mangrove forests has shrunk.
WCS-Canada is working with the transboundary Two Countries, One Forest initiative to support conservation planning for northern Appalachia from New York to Nova Scotia. We are helping to ensure that the region remains connected and able to accommodate the needs of wildlife as the climate alters habitats over time.
From the Newsroom
Nearly 6,000 Irrawaddy dolphins are alive and swimming in Bangladesh, according to new WCS research. Prior to this study, the largest known populations of Irrawaddy dolphins numbered in the low hundreds or less.