BRAINCAKEChanges in Species Distribution
The distribution of a species is where it lives. Each species can survive and reproduce only within a certain range of conditions, so as the climate changes, the areas with suitable conditions move.
With global warming:
• species move towards the poles and to higher altitudes, following the cooler conditions they need. Many British butterflies and birds, such as the comma butterfly, have spread northwards;
• species at the cold limit of their range, such as those on mountain tops or in the Arctic, have nowhere left to go and may die out locally. Polar bears, for example, depend on sea ice to hunt seals;
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More in Human Influence on Ecosystems
- Models of Global Warming
- Effects of Climate Change
- Risk of Flooding
- The Effect on Organisms
- Farming: Depletion of Resources
- Fishing: Depletion of Resources
- Anthropogenic Changes in the Ocean
- Problems with Conservation
All 29 lessons in Human Influence on Ecosystems · All Edexcel A-level Biology topics