Climate change and latitudinal patterns of intertidal thermal stress |
| |
Authors: | Helmuth Brian Harley Christopher D G Halpin Patricia M O'Donnell Michael Hofmann Gretchen E Blanchette Carol A |
| |
Institution: | University of South Carolina, Department of Biological Sciences and Marine Sciences Program, Columbia, SC 29208, USA. helmuth@biol.sc.edu |
| |
Abstract: | The interaction of climate and the timing of low tides along the West Coast of the United States creates a complex mosaic of thermal environments, in which northern sites can be more thermally stressful than southern sites. Thus, climate change may not lead to a poleward shift in the distribution of intertidal organisms, as has been proposed, but instead will likely cause localized extinctions at a series of "hot spots." Patterns of exposure to extreme climatic conditions are temporally variable, and tidal predictions suggest that in the next 3 to 5 years "hot spots" are likely to appear at several northern sites. |
| |
Keywords: | |
本文献已被 PubMed 等数据库收录! |
|