Map: Dan Majka

Mapped: How Animals Will Survive Climate Change

Maps + Infographics
by Morgane Croissant Apr 20, 2017

AS GLOBAL warming alters wildlife habitats, animals will adapt to changes by seeking cooler climates. This is no surprise as, according to Audubon, “[this is] how the world’s fauna survived climatic changes in the past”, but this time around, animals will have to face many man-made obstacles.

The maps below created by Dan Majka for The Nature Conservancy shows the average direction mammals (pink), birds (blue), and amphibians (yellow) need to take to track hospitable climates in North and South America.


 

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Fences, roads, walls, bridges, cities, etc. are some of the barriers that will obstruct the animals’ migration and could cause them to go extinct is they are not able to overcome them. There are ways we can help wildlife be on their way: Establishing wildlife corridors to reconnect natural regions is possible by “removing fencing, adding wildlife overpasses (or underpasses) to major roadways, and better routing of pipelines and power lines”, says The Nature Conservancy.

Below is the same map, but with the focus put only on the projected major paths that birds will take to reach cooler climates.

Although, while maintaining connectivity is a very important aspect of protecting wildlife against our warming global climate, fighting climate change in the first place is key to protecting all the animals roaming this planet — including us, humans.

For the full map, click here.

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