Effects of climate change on Andean biodiversity: a synthesis of studies published until 2015

Challenges for research on global change in mainland Ecuador

“…The consequences of climate change on Andean biodiversity remain unclear, given the high number of global climate change stressors, and variety of responses of climate change stressors on biological diversity. In their synthesis paper, Baez et al [42] critically reviewed published research investigating the effects of global climate change on the biodiversity of the Andean region up to 2015. Based on their synthesis, they concluded that observational data, modeling and experimental studies report negative impacts of global climate change on biological diversity of the Andean region.…”

“…In the last paper of this special collection, Cadilhac et al [50] present a preliminary state-of-the-art of climate change research based on a review of climatechange-related projects realized by Ecuadorian public research institutions and higher education institutions. Their online survey shows that research topics related to vulnerability and adaptation to climate change are relatively well covered, with a considerable number of projects emphasizing the impact on ecosystem services [13,16], biodiversity [41,42], agriculture [49] and health [51]. From the interinstitutional dialogue with policy makers, practitioners and professionals from government agencies, international organizations and NGOs, future research needs were identified in the field of [1] metrics that support technical analysis on mitigation, adaptation and greenhouse gas inventories [2], social impacts of climate change, governance and institutionalism [3], replicability of climate change studies and [4] traditional knowledge.…”

Editorial: Tropical Forest Ecosystem Responses to Increasing Nutrient Availability

“…In the decades to come, both climate change and atmospheric deposition likely will amplify the pressure exerted on the remaining tropical forests. Today, effects of global warming are already recognizable in the structure and species composition of tropical forests (e.g., Duque et al, 2015;Báez et al, 2016), and the foliar N concentrations of tropical trees have been found to increase in certain regions (e.g., Hietz et al, 2011). However, the effects of increased atmospheric nutrient deposition on the biological diversity and ecosystem functioning of tropical forests are currently poorly understood.…”

Morphological differences in a population of Rufous-collared Sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis, Statius Müller, 1776) (Passerine, Emberizidae) at different elevations in the Tropical Andes

“…Additionally, understanding morphological or phenotypical variation with elevation can provide insight into how animals adapt to their current environment. Finally, studying bird adaptations to elevational gradients may also aid in predicting the outcomes of climate change (Báez et al 2016).…”