Tag Archive for "global warming"
On a remote Scottish island scientists have discovered that the local sheep is actually getting smaller. The ecosystem on this island has been under surveillance since 1985 because of its uniqueness. It is very simple, mainly consisting of sheep and the vegetation they eat.
Now scientists have discovered that the weight of the sheep has decreased 5% over the last 25 years. The scientists claim that warmer climate has made it easier for the sheep thus helping the smaller sheep surviving. Earlier only the larger sheep were able to handle the harsh climate at the island. The reason for this development is earlier springs and longer falls which make the winters shorter.
Source: Various news sites.
New reports are stating that the fall temperatures in the Arctic is warmer than ever. The temperatures are 5 degrees Celsius (9 Fahrenheit) higher than normal so this is very serious. The record temperatures are due to many years where the Arctic ice has melted and now we are starting to see the results of all the melting.
The level of salt in the water is also going down due to all the melting water and who knows what kind of results we will see from lower salt levels. Some theroies say that lower levels of salt in Arctic sea may cause the Gulf Stream to go slower or even stop. This will make the climate in Northern Europe much colder.
There has also been some worrying reports that reindeer and caribou herds are declining. This is a real sign that the climate in the Arctic is changing fast.
I’m just worrying that it might be too late to do anything about human made global warming..
The ice in the Arctic is melting faster than ever. This year scientists are reporting the second lowest amount of ice cover since they started monitoring the ice 50 years ago. The only time there has been less ice was last year so we can clearly see a trend.
The lack of ice on the north pole make the conditions for polar bears very hard. They are dependent on lots of ice to hunt on for seals. When the ice cover shrinks there are less areas for them to hunt and thus less food sources.
CNN reports that due to lack of food polar bears has resorted to cannibalism. Scientists has seen improved activity of cannibalism among polar bears since 2004 and even seen a male polar bear dragging out a female from the den and killing it.
I’m just wondering if it is too late to stop the global warming. Doesn’t seem like “our” politicians are willing to do much about it.
And I’m also a bit concerned about the environment here in Northern Norway. We are already seeing some trends that the large fish stocks are moving further north to colder waters. Who knows how this will end?
A new study done with data from the last 25 years in England show that migrating birds seem to move further north in Europe. The researchers looked at 42 rare bird species in Britain and some of the birds that was rarely seen in the south of Britain has been spotted more often. These birds include the Dartford warbler, Cirl bunting, little egret and Cetti’s warbler. Other species, like the fieldfare, redwing or Slavonian grebe, that are more common in Britain saw a decrease in their numbers. The researchers filtered out other factors that could mess up with the observations.
The study done by Durham University, Cambridge University and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds clearly show that there is clear relation with higher temperatures and the migration of birds. Butterflies and birds are species that early adopt to climate changes so this study show that there really is global warming.
This means that I might see new bird species here in Northern Norway in the future. I’m a bit of birdwatcher so it will be cool to see new species, but I don’t want human made global warming to destroy the arctic ecosystem.
According to an article on cnn.com there are some worrying things happening here in the arctic. Scientists from the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, USA claims that arctic sea ice might totally melt away in September.
During the last decades the Arctic ice has become thinner and thinner each year. Looks like it might totally disappear this summer, but it depends on what kind of weather the north will get.
This is good news for the greedy oil companies as this makes it easier to search for oil and gas in the arctic. I know that Statoil (the biggest oil company here in Norway) has made plans on drilling in the north. I hope our politicians have the guts to stop the madness before it is too late, but I doubt it as they are allowing drilling for oil in the sea right outside of Northern Norway where the big fish stocks are living.
The last few years the sea temperature has been pretty high here in Northern Norway, resulting in blooming of algae and jellyfish. This seems to have messed with the fish populations in the fjord where I live, as the big shoals of fish did not arrive during the summer like they usually do.
I hope the fishing will be better this summer, but this research might be an indicator of bad fishing.
