By Melanie-Ann Feris and The Independent
Over one million plants and animals, including 60 percent of the protected animal species in the Kruger National Park, are destined to die out within decades due to manmade climate change.
These are the findings of an international study published in the latest issue of Nature, in which scientists from eight countries warn that, based even on the most conservative estimates, rising temperatures will trigger a global mass extinction of unprecedented proportions.
The study investigated 1 103 species of plants, mammals, birds, reptiles, frogs, butterflies and other insects living in six regions of the world - Europe, South Africa, Australia, Brazil, Mexico and Costa Rica.
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'There will no longer be anywhere climatically suitable for these species to live' Of 179 species that were studied in the Kruger National Park, four species are certain to become extinct. They are: the golden mole, the armed lizard, a type of dung beetle and a specific species of termite.
The IUCN, The World Conservation Union, said on Wednesday that climate change could rival habitat loss as a threat to the survival of species.
The findings were made during a study - the largest scientific collaboration ever of its kind - promoted by a series of workshops held by the IUCN.
Scientists found that up to 37 percent of species sampled in the study regions could be driven to extinction because they cannot adapt to the climate changes that are likely to occur between now and 2050.
A warmer world would push most species towards the poles or higher up mountains but for many this would be impossible. The home territories of those that could move might be so reduced as to make a breeding population unviable.
'Other species are expected to survive in much reduced areas' Extinction could come about after a slow decline in a breeding population or from a catastrophic crash in numbers because warmer temperatures will increase the risk of climate extremes such as droughts or floods.
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