As much as half of California could be occupied by new bird communities by 2070 according to a new study by PRBO Conservation Science (PRBO) and partners. The publication entitled "Reshuffling of species with climate disruption: A no-analog future for California birds?" is to be released in the open access peer reviewed journal PLoS ONE on September 2nd.
As the climate changes, bird species are expected to shift their distributions independently, in some cases resulting in combinations of co-occurring species that have not been seen before. These novel (or "no-analog") communities may disrupt complex webs of species interactions, with unanticipated consequences for species and ecosystems.
"We were surprised to see such a wide range of responses across the species we studied. We know that many species may shift their distributions in response to climate change, but these results suggest that the cumulative effect on community composition may be of equal or greater importance," according to the study's lead author, Diana Stralberg, PRBO Landscape Ecologist.
Researchers at PRBO Conservation Science, in collaboration with Stanford University, UC Santa Cruz, and the Klamath Bird Observatory, took advantage of a wealth of bird survey data and newly refined regional climate model projections for California to project current and potential future statewide distributions for 60 relatively common bird species. A few species, primarily those associated with coniferous forests, were projected to shift their distributions upslope in similar ways as the climate changes. But other species that often occur together were projected to shift in very different ways, resulting in novel species assemblages. Individual species maps may be viewed online at www.prbo.org/cadc (click on the "where will the birds be" banner on the front page).
Dr. John Wiens, PRBO's Chief Conservation Science Officer and a co-author of the novel study said, "This is more than just an interesting finding about birds. Birds are nature's barometers. If birds occur in different combinations in the future, it's likely that other organisms such as insects and plants will as well. The reshuffling of bird assemblages that we project may just be the tip of the iceberg."
Using PRBO's science to project the effects of climate change on birds into the future has implications for how our ecosystems are conserved, managed and restored today. New and novel approaches will be needed to manage and conserve biodiversity. Single-species approaches will not work well in the context of rapidly-changing climate and ecological communities. Long-term ecological monitoring, flexible management strategies, and frequent communication between scientists, managers, and decision-makers will be needed more than ever.
Dr. Terry Root of Stanford University and another co-author of the publication explained, "We know climate disruption will result in major ecological surprises. This work provides yet another wake-up call to scientists, managers and the public struggling with managing biodiversity in the face of rapid environmental change."
About PRBO Conservation Science:
PRBO Conservation Science, founded as Point Reyes Bird Observatory in 1965, works to conserve birds, other wildlife and ecosystems through innovative scientific research and outreach. We partner with hundreds of governmental and non-governmental agencies as well as private interests to ensure that every dollar invested in conservation yields the most for biodiversity -- benefiting our environment, our economy and our communities. Visit PRBO on the web at www.prbo.org.
Note to reporters: Our organizational name is PRBO Conservation Science, as written with the acronym (not Point Reyes Bird Observatory Conservation Science).
Funding Statement: Funding for this paper was provided by an anonymous donor to PRBO Conservation Science and by the Faucett Family Foundation. Funding for avian data collection came from multiple sources, with primary funders including the David and Lucille Packard Foundation, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, USDA Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, University of California, and the CALFED Bay-Delta Program. D.S. and D.J. were supported in part by the National Science Foundation (DBI-0542868). M.A.S. was supported in part by the National Science Foundation (ATM-0215934) and the California Energy Commission. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
Citation: Stralberg D, Jongsomjit D, Howell CA, Snyder MA, Alexander JD, et al. (2009) Re-Shuffling of Species with Climate Disruption: A No-Analog Future for California Birds? PLoS ONE 4(9): e6825. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0006825
Media Contact: John Wiens, PhD, Chief Conservation Science Officer, PRBO, (707) 781-2555 ext. 319, jwiens@prbo.org -or- Diana Stralberg, Landscape Ecologist, PRBO, (707) 781-2555 ext. 325, dstralberg@prbo.org
Please link to the freely available manuscript at: http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0006825
Disclaimer This press release refers to an upcoming article in PLoS ONE. The release has been provided by the article authors and/or their institutions. Any opinions expressed in this are the personal views of the contributors, and do not necessarily represent the views or policies of PLoS. PLoS expressly disclaims any and all warranties and liability in connection with the information found in the release and article and your use of such information.
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PLoS ONE