articleScienceApr 30, 2015Closed access

Accelerating extinction risk from climate change

University of Connecticut

PubMed
Indexed incrossrefpubmed

Abstract

Current predictions of extinction risks from climate change vary widely depending on the specific assumptions and geographic and taxonomic focus of each study. I synthesized published studies in order to estimate a global mean extinction rate and determine which factors contribute the greatest uncertainty to climate change-induced extinction risks. Results suggest that extinction risks will accelerate with future global temperatures, threatening up to one in six species under current policies. Extinction risks were highest in South America, Australia, and New Zealand, and risks did not vary by taxonomic group. Realistic assumptions about extinction debt and dispersal capacity substantially increased extinction…

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Authors

1

Topics & keywords

Keywords
  • Extinction (optical mineralogy)
  • Climate change
  • Biodiversity
  • Perspective (graphical)
  • Face (sociological concept)
  • Geography
  • Ecology
  • Environmental resource management
UN Sustainable Development Goals
  • Climate action
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