Impacts on wildlife

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  Polar Bear

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  African Elephant

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  Marine Turtles

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  Tiger

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  Giant Panda

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  African Lion

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  Corals

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  Whales and Dolphins

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  Penguins

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  American Pika

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  Song birds

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  Monarch butterfly

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  Walrus

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  Salmon

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  Waterfowl

© Steve Morello/WWF-US

African lion
The African lion population has declined by roughly 30% over the last two decades due to indiscriminate killings and prey depletion. This could become worse with more frequent extreme weather events resulting from climate change. A recent study found that droughts and downpours triggered major die-offs of African lions in 1994 and 2001 by facilitating the outbreak of diseases.

© WWF-US / Scott Dickerson

Walrus
As Arctic sea ice has receded far from the Russian and Alaskan coasts, walruses – including many females and their calves – have been forced to take refuge on land, congregating in the tens of thousands at “haul outs” along the coasts. These mass congregations have led to violent stampedes, which are particularly dangerous to young walruses.

In 2009, 131 walrus carcasses were discovered near Icy Cape, Alaska. A 2009 U.S. Geological Survey report on the incident said that all of the carcasses seemed to be of calves and that their deaths "appear to be related to the loss of sea ice over the Chukchi Sea continental shelf." Similar incidents have also been reported in recent years on the Arctic shores of Russia.

As the sea ice continues to decline, walruses are forced to use the shoreline as their hunting base, limiting their ability to find food. The problem is especially serious for mothers and their calves because the young are weak swimmers. Scientists report a recent rise in the number of calves orphaned at sea after becoming separated from their mothers. While the cause isn’t clear, experts believe that the lack of sea ice has created a dangerous environment for mothers and calves. Read more.

Sockeye (red) Salmon jumping at Katmai National Park, Alaska USA
© Kevin Schafer / WWF-Canon

Salmon
Salmon depend on clean, cold water. Unfortunately climate change is raising water temperatures and causing the salmon’s metabolism to rise. This forces them to find more food, which takes energy away from growth. Warmer water also leads to earlier egg hatching, making them more vulnerable to predators. Earlier hatchings could also disrupt the food supply for young salmon as the timing may be out of sync with when the insects they eat are present. In addition, precipitation that falls as rain instead of snow causes flooding, which washes away incubating eggs in the stream bed.

© David Brezinski/ Goldfinch, US Fish & Wildlife Service

Song birds
Recent studies have shown that climate change may be affecting the timing, behavior, ranges and population dynamics of many migratory bird species. Many birds are already breeding and laying their eggs earlier, but soon this may no longer be at a time when their insect food (such as caterpillars) is available. In addition, many birds have changed where they winter or stopover during migration, with nearly 60% of the 305 North American species now wintering further north.

A flock of geese takes to the skies during annual migration in North Dakota
© Daphne Kinzler/ND Division of Tourism

Waterfowl
One of the most important regions in North America for waterfowl breeding habitat is the Prairie Pothole Region which extends from Iowa and the northern Great Plains into Canada. Shallow depressions fill with water in the spring, generating a distinctive breeding environment for millions of waterfowl. Climate change threatens to dry up these ponds or shorten their availability, which would reduce their ability to breed.

Emperor Penguins
© Fritz Pölking/WWF

Penguins
The Emperor penguin is extremely vulnerable to climate change because it is heavily dependent on pack ice. Warmer winter temperatures are leading to thinner ice and some populations of Emperor penguins are already showing signs of decline. This species of penguin relies on ice of a particular thickness and as the ice thins, they may have difficulty finding suitable sites to raise their young. Research indicates that current rates of global warming and sea ice loss would likely lead to the marked decline or complete disappearance of many penguin colonies, including 50 percent of Emperor penguins and 75 percent of Adélie penguins.

© WWF-US / Steve Morello

American Pika
American pikas are extremely vulnerable to climate change because they need to live in cool mountaintop areas. Rising temperatures force many such mountain animals to migrate to higher elevations, but there is a limit to how far they can go. Pikas cannot tolerate hotter temperatures, since they have dense fur and do not live in protective burrows. They are not able to migrate long distances, so adapting to climate change is difficult. In fact, with rising temperatures over the past few decades, pikas have begun to disappear and face extinction.