Bottom line. You have put your faith in junk science that
cannot prove there is actually global warming, let alone the
root cause. That is an undeniable fact.
You obviously know NOTHING about what's been going on in wildlife biology, or else you wouldn't be making such stupid remarks. I do river and terrestrial species surveys here in Canada and we are seeing incredible changes in range extensions of species which could *never* exist here in the past (birds, insects, parasitic invertebrates, etc..)== not all of which are beneficial as many invasive plants, animals and and parasites threaten the habitat of native species. All of us who work in the field are well aware of how habitat impacts such as climate change and rampant expansion of the human footprint are driving various species to extinction. If you can't see that things are changing, I suspect you're just another typical urban or suburban nitwit who has no idea of what is going on "outside" in the real world. That's okay.. when the forests have dried out and few species can survive, and the rivers, lakes and streams run dry everywhere, and you finally are paying $10 or more for a head of lettuce, perhaps you might wake up and take things a little more seriously -- although somehow I doubt that.
Just a few points to ponder... from current research by Canadian biologists who have been working in the field for 25-30 years -- all interviewed on "The Nature of Things" last autumn.
* There has been a major increase in lungworm parasites in the Musk Ox herds due to longer, warmer Arctic summers -- which have led to advancement of the intermediate parasite hosts (slugs and snails) which are proliferating at much higher latitudes than before. Some of the species of slugs used to take a couple of years to reproduce, and are doing so in one season now, so there are many more, and they, in turn, act as hosts for the lungworms which infect the Musk ox in a much wider range on the tundra than in the past.
* Murres that nest on high ledges along the Arctic seas are having to hunt for fish over much larger areas than before. They used to catch mainly Arctic cod, but they're pretty much gone, so they are mainly catching smaller fish such as smelt. These fish aren't as nutritious as the cod, so the young murre aren't growing nearly as well or quickly, making them less able to survive and reach maturity in time to migrate south. In summer, the heat is too high up on the ledges of traditional colonies and one of the scientists who has been studying these colonies for 30+ years says that the adults are often dying from heat prostration because they try to shelter their young from the sun and its just too hot for these Arctic birds.
* Caribou herds are having a difficult time moving from area to area on the tundra. With the ice not freezing across or not freezing solidly enough, the caribou are forced to swim where they used to walk. Aerial footage shot in caribou migration areas often show a of worm-like network in the ice where caribou swim in search of the "next" section of land. Often, these "trails" end with a dead caribou -- died of hypothermia and exhaustion -- frozen into the ice. The females are in poorer condition at calving time, and they lose weight during lactation due to less food and the need to move more often in search of food. Their loss of weight results in 20% less fertility in breeding season. Due to temperatures change, mosquito and other biting fly populations are greater than in the past and they emerge sooner and take a toll on the condition of the caribou.
* Female polar bears are thinner than in the past. They weigh less when they give birth and while raising their young as they have to expend more energy searching for food as the pack ice disappears. They have to spend more time swimming in the freezing waters getting from flow to flow than they have ever had to in the past. Basically, the pursuit of food is hard on the females and also on the young cubs which have a difficult time keeping up because they have to do so much swimming (and lose energy in the cold water). Scarcity of food also makes male Polar bears more dangerous to the females and young as they will kill them for food.
People who can read all of the above and not "see" what is going on are, quite frankly, deaf and blind luddites. Even in the field of agriculture, conferences and workshops on how to deal with climate change are now widespread. Farmers are attempting to gear up for climate change, scarcity of water, etc.. You probably just don't get out enough to know what is happening in the "real world". No, I suspect that, you just sit around in your home or office, going out into the world via your internet connection, so you think you know everything. Oh, and when you *do* actually go somewhere, you probably hop into your SUV and rip along some highway that bisects some wetland, not ever noticing that you're crushing the life out of hundreds of frogs migrating between their winter and summer ranges. That's okay.. I see your type all of the time and I have little respect for you. I have reached the point where I believe that if it is man's fate to turn this planet to desert, then so be it.
croc |
