An interesting recent study that re-samples sites first surveyed by Jared
Diamond 40+yrs ago.... to look at changes in elevation use by montane birds in
New Guinea region..
Colin
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2014/02/13/1318190111.abstract
Abstract
Temperate-zone species have responded to warming temperatures by
shifting their distributions poleward and upslope. Thermal
tolerance data suggests that tropical
species may respond to warming temperatures even more strongly than
temperate-zone species,
but this prediction has yet to be tested.
We addressed this data gap by conducting resurveys to measure
distributional responses
to temperature increases in the
elevational limits of the avifaunas of two geographically and faunally
independent New Guinean
mountains, Mt. Karimui and Karkar Island,
47 and 44 y after they were originally surveyed. Although species
richness is roughly
five times greater on mainland Mt. Karimui
than oceanic Karkar Island, distributional shifts at both sites were
similar: upslope
shifts averaged 113 m (Mt. Karimui) and
152 m (Karkar Island) for upper limits and 95 m (Mt. Karimui) and 123 m
(Karkar Island)
for lower limits. We incorporated these
results into a metaanalysis to compare distributional responses of
tropical species
with those of temperate-zone species,
finding that average upslope shifts in tropical montane species match
local temperature
increases significantly more closely than
in temperate-zone montane species. That tropical species appear to be
strong responders
has global conservation implications and
provides empirical support to hitherto untested models that predict
widespread extinctions
in upper-elevation tropical endemics with
small ranges.
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