A recent study by Academia Sinica created a novel method for calculating elevation-dependent climate change-induced temperature shifts, allowing scientists to predict environmental impacts with greater precision.
The research was published in the journal Nature on Wednesday with open public access.
The study said myriad species are not migrating fast enough to survive in the changing climate map, even if global warming is curbed as planned, Biodiversity Research Center fellow Shen Sheng-feng (沈聖峰), who led the research, told a news conference in Taipei yesterday.
Photo: Yang Yuan-ting, Taipei
According to the researcher’s calculations, the isotherm — the boundary line of a temperature zone — is moving upward at 11.67m per year, a rate far higher than previous estimates, he said.
There is a general lack of data on the impact of climate on mountainous regions, where terrain difficulties impede weather station construction and ecological observation, he said.
Study coauthor Chen I-ching (陳一菁), associate professor of life science at National Cheng Kung University, showed in a 2011 study that isotherm shifts outpaced wildlife population’s migration, indicating isotherm calculations were wrong, Sheng said.
The research team utilized satellite data, empirical data on the velocities of species range shifts and modeling based on thermal dynamics to shed light on the relationship between isotherm changes and the vertical relocation speed of species, he said.
The study covered more than 8,600 mountain ranges across 17 regions of the world, including the Yukons in Alaska, the Mediterranean Basin, the Kodar Mountains in Russian Siberia and the Sumatra region in Indonesia, Sheng said.
The accelerated speed of warming shown in the study poses a “severe threat” to the unique species sheltered in the mountains in a troubling sign for the environment, he said.
First author Chen Wei-ping (詹偉平), a post-doctoral fellow at Harvard University, said the study revealed that although Taiwan proper’s mountainous regions are warming more slowly than the global average, the isotherm is rising faster than average due to humidity.
This means climate change would have a stronger impact on Taiwan’s ecological conditions than previously thought, he said.
An Academia Sinica spokesperson said that the research blazed a new trail in climate science and also sounded a call to action for governments to jointly protect vulnerable ecosystems in mountain ranges across the world.
Snow fell in the mountainous areas of northern, central and eastern Taiwan in the early hours of yesterday, as cold air currents moved south. In the northern municipality of Taoyuan, snow started falling at about 6am in Fusing District (復興), district head Su Tso-hsi (蘇佐璽) said. By 10am, Lalashan National Forest Recreation Area, as well as Hualing (華陵), Sanguang (三光) and Gaoyi (高義) boroughs had seen snowfall, Su said. In central Taiwan, Shei-Pa National Park in Miaoli County and Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area in Nantou County saw snowfall of 5cm and 6cm respectively, by 10am, staff at the parks said. It began snowing
Global bodies should stop excluding Taiwan for political reasons, President William Lai (賴清德) told Pope Francis in a letter, adding that he agrees war has no winners. The Vatican is one of only 12 countries to retain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and Taipei has watched with concern efforts by Beijing and the Holy See to improve ties. In October, the Vatican and China extended an accord on the appointment of Catholic bishops in China for four years, pointing to a new level of trust between the two parties. Lai, writing to the pope in response to the pontiff’s message on Jan. 1’s
A Vietnamese migrant worker on Thursday won the NT$12 million (US$383,590) jackpot on a scratch-off lottery ticket she bought from a lottery shop in Changhua County’s Puyan Township (埔鹽), Taiwan Lottery Co said yesterday. The lottery winner, who is in her 30s and married, said she would continue to work in Taiwan and send her winnings to her family in Vietnam to improve their life. More Taiwanese and migrant workers have flocked to the lottery shop on Sec 2 of Jhangshuei Road (彰水路) to share in the luck. The shop owner, surnamed Chen (陳), said that his shop has been open for just
HOLIDAY EXERCISE: National forest recreation areas from north to south offer travelers a wide choice of sights to connect with nature and enjoy its benefits Hiking is a good way to improve one’s health, the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency said, as it released a list of national forest recreation areas that travelers can visit during the Lunar New Year holiday. Taking a green shower of phytoncides in the woods could boost one’s immunity system and metabolism, agency Director-General Lin Hwa-ching (林華慶) cited a Japanese study as saying. For people visiting northern Taiwan, Lin recommended the Dongyanshan National Forest Recreation Area in Taoyuan’s Fusing District (復興). Once an important plantation in the north, Dongyanshan (東眼山) has a number of historic monuments, he said. The area is broadly covered by
RSS