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From ancient times, people suspected that the climate of a region could change over the course of centuries. For example, Theophrastus, a pupil of Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle in the 4th century BC, told how the draining of marshes had made a particular locality more susceptible to freezing, and speculated that lands became warmer when the clearing of forests exposed them to sunlight.
The effects of climate change on plant biodiversity can be predicted by using various models, for example bioclimatic models. [5] [6] Habitats may change due to climate change. This can cause non-native plants and pests to impact native vegetation diversity. [7]
A related phenomenon driven by climate change is woody plant encroachment, affecting up to 500 million hectares globally. [218] Climate change has contributed to the expansion of drier climate zones, such as the expansion of deserts in the subtropics. [219] The size and speed of global warming is making abrupt changes in ecosystems more likely ...
However, the speed of recent climate change is very fast. Due to this rapid change, for example cold-blooded animals (a category which includes amphibians, reptiles and all invertebrates) may struggle to find a suitable habitat within 50 km of their current location at the end of this century (for a mid-range scenario of future global warming). [6]
Localised climate change is the favoured explanation for the origins of agriculture in the Levant. [1] When major climate change took place after the last ice age (c. 11,000 BC), much of the earth became subject to long dry seasons. [29] These conditions favoured annual plants which die off in the long dry season, leaving a dormant seed or tuber.
This is because climate change increases droughts and heat waves that eventually inhibit plant growth on land, and soils will release more carbon from dead plants when they are warmer. [ 75 ] [ 76 ] The rate at which oceans absorb atmospheric carbon will be lowered as they become more acidic and experience changes in thermohaline circulation ...
Climate change has been linked to human migration from as early as the end of the Pleistocene to the early twenty-first century. [ 13 ] [ 14 ] The effect of climate on available resources and living conditions such as food, water, and temperature drove the movement of populations and determined the ability for groups to begin a system of ...
[2] [3] Climate change represents long-term changes in temperature and average weather patterns. [4] [5] This leads to a substantial increase in both the frequency and the intensity of extreme weather events. [6] As a region's climate changes, a change in its flora and fauna follows. [7]