Download Climate change module

Analyzing the Biological
Impacts of Climate Change
Name ___________________________
Name ___________________________
Name ___________________________
Autumn 2013
1. This map gives the current average annual temperature for
major cities in North America.
a) In 2100, what current west coast city would Seattle be
most similar to, if current trends continue and temperatures
increase by 6.4 degrees?
b) The King County is home to 1.9 million people. Comment
on the consequences for these individuals.
2. In Washington, most water for crop irrigation and drinking
comes from snowpack. Comment on how declining snowpack is
likely to affect:
a) Seattle
(Created by Freeman; 2011)
b) Washington state’s fruit industry
3. In Lake Washington, Daphnia are the major food source for most
fish. They are herbivores and mainly feed on diatoms. The
regression lines on the graph show recent trends in the timing of
population peaks for diatoms and Daphnia.
a) What can you conclude from this graph?
(From Winder & Schindler; Ecology 2004)
b) What do the data imply about the future of the Daphnia population?
4. This graph shows the % change in average yield of wheat in key wheat-producing
countries from 1980-2008, plotted as the difference between actual yields and projected
yields in the absence of climate change. When the average is negative, it means that the
country produced less wheat than they were projected to produce.
a) Much of Washington’s wheat crop is exported. What do these
data imply for Washington’s wheat farmers?
b) In extremely hot summers, yields of Washington wheat drop. But over
the next 100 years, the impact of extreme heat is projected to be offset by the impact
of increased atmospheric CO2 on wheat yields. Explain why.
(From Lobell et al; Science 2011)
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5. Feedbacks describe situations where an event has an effect that “feeds back” to the original event. For example,
if climate change causes “X” and “X” causes more climate change, the feedback is considered a positive feedback.
On the other hand, if climate change causes “Y” and “Y” reduces climate change, the feedback is considered a
negative feedback. Fill out the following table with this in mind.
What is a possible impact of this event
Is this a Positive Feedback, a
Event
and how does it affect climate change?
Negative feedback, or neither?
…decreases in Net Primary
Production (NPP) in marine
environments.
Climate …increases in tree growth in
change old growth forests in the
is
Pacific Northwest.
causing… …increases in fire frequency
and severity in the Western
Cascades.
…the sea level to rise.
6. Salmon are sensitive to heat stress. After being handled, the body’s
hormones must return to equilibrium to continue regular function. The
graph shows the time salmon needed to return to equilibrium (after being
handled) when placed in 13oC, 19 oC, or 21 oC water.
a) Based on this analysis, how will climate change impact salmon
populations in Washington state?
b) Comment on the implications for Washington’s fishing
industry.
(From Gale et al; Fisheries Research 2011)
7. Recent work on Mount Rainier has documented changes in the
number of trees becoming established in alpine meadows—treeless
habitats dominated by wildflowers. The data graphed to the right are from
the ranger station at Sunrise. (Sunrise is the highest visitor center at the
park and is within the range of alpine meadows.)
a) What do these data suggest about the distribution of trees?
b) If climate change continues, what is the probable fate of alpine
meadow habitats on Mount Rainier?
8. Consider the following reaction: CO2(g) + H2O(l)
a) Explain why seawater is becoming more acidic.
(From Rochefort and Peterson; Arctic & Alpine Research 1996)
H+(aq) + HCO3-(aq)
b) Oysters have calcium carbonate (CaCO3) shells. Rates of CaCO3 deposition in marine organisms slow when
pH drops. Discuss the implications for Washington’s shellfish industry.
********* Please turn the completed exercise in to any T.A. (and make sure that your names are legible!)
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