A study conducted at the University of Helsinki shows that as the climate changes, species adapted to a warm climate, such as certain birds and butterflies, have become increasingly common in Finland. At the same time, species that have adapted to a cool climate have become rarer and moved further north.
In the past 30 years, the natural environment in Finland has undergone significant changes. Researchers at the University of Helsinki examined this change using data collected in nationwide species monitoring of birds, butterflies, forest vegetation and phytoplankton.
"Our research shows that, particularly in the case of birds and butterflies, species adapted to a cool climate have, on average, decreased and moved further north. Examples of species adapted to the cold among birds are willow ptarmigans and among butterflies bog fritillaries. We didn't observe significant changes in forest vegetation or phytoplankton," says Jussi Mäkinen from the Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences.
The researchers also found that a strong decrease in species adapted to a cool climate has resulted in a decrease of variation in temperature adaptation within species communities. This means that each species community is increasingly composed of only species adapted to a warm climate or species adapted to a cool climate. This reduces biodiversity, which has an important function in balancing ecosystems.
The researchers consider this development worrying, since the declining species diversity can increase the sensitivity of ecosystems to disturbances, such as the random increase of pest species. Among others, these include insects causing forest damage in Finland, such as European spruce bark beetles, pine shoot beetles and conifer sawflies.
The research results provide valuable and up-to-date information on how Finland's natural environment is changing due to global warming and changing habitats. Species adapted to a warm climate benefit from these changes, while cold-climate species are in danger of a rapid decline. The researchers point out that this trend may lead to an accelerating loss of biodiversity in the coming decades. This change is driven, for example, by the decreased interaction between species, including predator-prey interaction.
"The decades-long nationwide monitoring of species reveals trends in species that would remain undiscovered when examining them with a time span of a few years or only in small areas. Consequently, our results provide valuable information that can help in shaping environmental policy and steering debate on the state of Finland's natural environment," Mäkinen sums up.
The study is based on extensive cooperation between Finnish and international research institutes as well as input from volunteer nature enthusiasts.
Original article:
J. Mäkinen, E.E. Ellis, L.H. Antão, A. Davrinche, A. Laine, M. Saastamoinen, I. Conenna, M. Hällfors, A. Santangeli, E. Kaarlejärvi, J. Heliölä, I. Huikkonen, M. Kuussaari, R. Leinonen, A. Lehikoinen, J. Pöyry, A. Suuronen, M. Salemaa, T. Tonteri, K.M. Vuorio, B. Skjelbred, M. Järvinen, S. Drakare, L. Carvalho, E. Welk, G. Seidler, P. Vangansbeke, F. Máliš, R. Hédl, A.G. Auffret, J. Plue, P. De Frenne, J.M. Kalwij, J. Vanhatalo, & T. Roslin, Thermal homogenization of boreal communities in response to climate warming, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 122 (17) e2415260122, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2415260122
