Where the wild things are [climate change and conservation

Abstract

Climate change is affecting the natural world. Can technology help conservationists protect animals before it's too late, or are there other more pressing threats for them to deal with. In September 2016, a dead fin whale washed up on a Devon beach. Over the last few months, 30 sperm whales have beached around the British, German, French and Dutch coasts. Early in October, 6,000 Pacific walruses arrived on a beach in north-west Alaska. Around the same time, an Exeter University study concluded that Cornish cod may have trouble reproducing when they move northwards along the British coast, and Manchester University researchers claimed that the natural world might soon face the crisis of species splintering into isolated populations. These are just a few effects that climate change is already having on the natural world. As global and local temperatures rise, land and marine habitats change, affecting the animals reliant on those habitats.