Climate change threatens wave of extinctions in Australia
07 Sep 2006
Australia could face a wave of extinctions as changes in temperature and precipitation resulting from climate change alters ecosystems across the country, warns WWF on National Threatened Species Day.
National Threatened Species Day is held on September 7 each year to highlight the pressures on Australia's native plants and animals. September 7 is the day in 1936 when the last Tasmanian tiger died in the Hobart Zoo.
This year, on the 70th anniversary of the Tasmanian tiger's extinction, WWF is spotlighting the impact of climate change on Australia's threatened species.
The global conservation organisation is calling on Australians to make a choice - to try to rescue our native plants and animals or remember them as species we've allowed to disappear forever.
"The future of thousands of native Australian species depends on our ability to manage the threat of climate change," said Dr Nicola Markus, WWF's Program Leader for Species.
"Hundreds of ecosystems around the country will be altered and we will lose much of our unique biodiversity if we allow climate change to continue unchecked."
Australia already ranks as one of the world's top nations in terms of the number of its threatened species, according to the World Conservation Union.
The World Conservation Union's 2006 Red List of Threatened Species identifies 639 Australian species as threatened with extinction, with 65 listed as critically endangered.
"The impact of hotter temperatures, changing rainfall patterns, more destructive fire regimes and rising sea levels will add to pressures already facing our native species - such as fragmented and degraded habitats, competition and predation by invasive species and pollution," said Dr Markus.
According to the CSIRO, between 90% and 100% of core habitat for Australian vertebrates would be lost under a 5°C rise in global average surface temperatures, which some scientists predict could occur by the end of the century.
WWF is calling on Australians to take action to prevent dangerous climate change and its impacts and protect our threatened plants and animals. Actions include switching to green power, becoming more energy efficient and walking, cycling or catching public transport instead of driving.
Find out more
Charlie Stevens, Press Officer, WWF-Australia
Phone: 02 8202 1274
Mobile: 0424 649 689
Email: cstevens@wwf.org.au
Dr Nicola Markus, Program Leader Species, WWF-Australia
Phone: 02 8202 1205
Mobile: 0438 125 266
Images available on request.
