birding-aus

US songbirds getting smaller, possibly as a result of climate change

To: "Laurie Knight" <>, "Ian May" <>
Subject: US songbirds getting smaller, possibly as a result of climate change
From: "michael norris" <>
Date: Sat, 13 Mar 2010 21:58:30 +1100
It's important to realise that substantial climate change has already been recorded in parts of the USA in recent decades, as in some other parts of the world.

As the first generations to have had so much data and the resources to study it, we are privileged to be able to know about what has already happened to birds (and much else in the biosphere) associated with such phenomena. The enormous impacts of land-clearing on Australian birds is another well-established fact for this International Year of Biodiversity.

This is quite separate from any debates about humans causing climate change and views about future climate change.

But, let's face it, there is a "War on Science" in which denialists encourage irrational (not evidence-based) mockery of sound science and its predictions about the impacts of some humans on the rest of the biosphere (including other humans). See Clive Hamilton's recent articles on the ABC's Drum for the way these attacks are orchestrated.

I also recommend Professor Stephan Lewandowsky's Climate debate: opinion vs evidence http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/stories/s2842091.htm.

And for a commentary on the fallacies in some major denialist arguments:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn11462-climate-change-a-guide-for-the-perplexed.html

Michael Norris
Melbourne

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