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The Impact of Climate Change on Biodiversity
THE ARCTIC
Who can forget the widely circulated image of a polar bear trapped on an icefloe with neither prey nor land, nor even another ice floe in sight. Although Polar Bears can swim short distances, it takes five times as much energy as simply shuffling across the ice. Although polar bear numbers have improved in some regions – largely as a result of the ban on unregulated hunting in the 1970s, numbers generally are either static or in decline.
For the most part, shorter winters and warmer summers mean a shorter hunting season and poor condition which in turn leads to lower reproductive success. Some Polar Bears have taken to scavenging in settlements in order to get enough food.
Ringed Seals which are staple of the Polar Bear’s diet, are also facing threats due to climate change and sea ice loss because they depend on sea ice for resting, breeding, and pupping in snow dens on the ice. Shrinking and thinning ice reduces their safe habitat, increasing vulnerability to predators and environmental stress. As warming continues and sea ice continues to shrink, the overall prospects for Polar Bears are not good.
The Walrus, already listed as Vulnerable, is similarly dependent on sea ice to rest between dives. Now the few onshore resting places are so crowded that their young are often trampled underfoot. [For an interesting way you can help Walruses– see below].
Arctic Research is expensive and difficult. You can help the Walrus—and our scientists—without getting cold or wet by analysing satellite data from your lounge room. Help count walruses and support vital research. Click here to learn more
The Arctic Fox, also listed as Vulnerable, is being quietly displaced from its own territory by the northward advance of the larger red fox, as the treeline advances and displaces the tundra on which its prey – small mammals and rodents, used to live. Additionally, with a coat that turns white as the days shorten, the loss of snow cover diminishes the Arctic fox’s camouflage, making survival more difficult. The only positive note here, is that it has been successfully bred in captivity in Finland.
Migratory birds are having to adapt to the earlier arrival of spring, which means flying before they have accumulated sufficient body fat and their food supply— insects, plants, fish — is no longer synchronised with their arrival. At present they are adapting by shortening the interval between stops, but this can only work for a short time as the winters get shorter and shorter. Evolution is a slow process which can’t keep up with the rate of change.
Reindeer and Caribou depend on being able to forage in soft snow for lichens and mosses. Ironically, warming now brings rain instead of snow and this turns to impenetrable ice during colder periods. Additionally, changes in vegetation due to Arctic greening are shifting tundra ecosystems, often resulting in less suitable habitat and food for these animals. These combined effects contribute to population declines and threaten the long-term survival of caribou and reindeer herds across the Arctic.
[I have just found out that Reindeer and Caribou are in fact the same species – thanks Ecosia AI] with Caribou being the name given to wild populations in Canada and Alaska, while Reindeer is the name for both wild and domesticated herds in Russia, Eurasia and Scandinavia].
According to NOAA, despite some improvement in some regions, coastal Arctic Caribou herds have shown a 65% decline overall in line with warming trends and among Reindeer herds upon which indigenous subsistence communities such as the Sámi depend, there have been several mass starvation events.
Unstable sea‑ice routes and permafrost degradation also undermine traditional hunting, travel, and food security and are forcing changes in migration routes, cultural practices and livelihoods among the approximately 200,000 indigenous people who live in small scattered communities around the Arctic.
Marine Life
Beneath the surface, phytoplankton communities are shifting in composition and timing, reorganising the invisible foundation upon which all polar marine life depends including Chum Salmon -a staple of Alaskan indigenous communities, and the great marine mammals such as the Beluga Whale, the Narwhal and the Bowhead Whale, not to mention the small crustaceans and smaller fish on which other species depend. The Bowhead Whale particularly, was so heavily exploited in the past, that the loss of genetic diversity makes it vulnerable, despite some recovery. Now sea ice loss is making it increasingly vulnerable because it is affecting its access to food and offers less protection from storms.
Krill is the primary food for Bowhead and many other Whales including those in Antarctica, particularly the Blue Whale, the largest mammal on earth. You may recall that krill needs cold water and sea ice during its larval stage and that extensive melting of sea ice coupled with commercial exploitation has resulted in a 50% drop in krill numbers in the northern Arctic. While the Central Arctic fishery is a Protected Area, this doesn’t protect Krill from changes in sea ice and ocean warming. On top of this, there is strong pressure for the lifting of this precautionary ban as the Arctic becomes more accessible.
Warming waters are also bringing predators such as Orcas into Arctic waters and less sea ice means the whales are also less protected from them. Additionally Arctic Whales are also under threat from shipping, noise, underwater drilling and pollution.
Specific Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) cover parts of the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas, focusing on protecting ice-dependent species and their ecosystems, though exact boundaries and protections vary by country and international agreements.
Blue Corridors
Shipping alone has increased by 37% in the last ten years as declining sea ice makes the Arctic more navigable and demand for mining and the risks of spills are growing. While MPAs of prime feeding and breeding grounds provide some protection, the World Wildlife Fund is calling on governments to protect their migration routes during the season – not just their destinations, with Blue Corridors like the interconnected wildlife corridors which are being created for terrestrial species in places such as the Atlantic Rainforest, to enable land dwelling species to migrate and breed, even as their numbers decline.
Both Arctic and Antarctic Whales make huge migrations from the poles to the tropics each year to breed and then return with their young. Blue Corridors would involve rerouting vessels away from their migration routes, better monitoring, knowledge sharing and better communication between the countries along the way. Although currently proposed for Arctic Whales this would make sense for Antarctic Whales too.
Protecting Whales could even count as a mitigation measure because according to one report, each great whale sequesters around 33 tons of Carbon.
IN ANTARCTICA
Southern Right Whales in Antarctica – whose main diet is also krill, have shown a decline in birth rates linked to climate-driven changes in their foraging grounds. Until recently, there was an agreement in place in the Antarctic whereby only dispersed krill fishing was permitted and not in protected areas. However, this lapsed in November 2025 after the parties failed to reach agreement.
Since then commercial fishers have moved into protected areas with a vengeance, filling their quotas in record time.
Penguins
Although two large areas of the Antarctic have been reserved and the newly declared Ross Sea Marine Reserve is the largest in the world, Emperor Penguin colonies are suffering catastrophic breeding failures, even within Protected Areas as the fast ice – their breeding platform, breaks up before chicks have fledged – a time in which they can neither swim not fly. Ten thousand died in 2022, which led to Emperor Penguins being put on the ICUN endangered list.
Chinstrap Penguins have seen significant declines in colonies along the Antarctic Peninsula, where warming temperatures have reduced sea ice and altered krill populations, their primary food source. Although still listed as being of least concern in 2022, so were Emperor Penguins until their sudden decline, and their numbers are falling.
Adélie Penguins show more mixed trends with some colonies declining due to shrinking sea ice and increased competition, while others in colder regions are stable or even increasing, highlighting the complex regional impacts of climate change.
Seals (Pinnipeds)
Antarctic Fur Seals whose numbers have fallen by half between 1999 and 2025 have also been put on the ICUN endangered list. Their larger cousins the Southern Elephant Seal have also suffered catastrophic declines. Between 2023 and 2024 when pupping rates fell by 90% and the number of breeding females had fallen by 23%. Although partly driven by loss of sea ice and prey, populations in Argentina were also hard hit by outbreaks of the HVN1 strain of Avian Flu.
Apart from reducing emissions and creating protective areas, measures for protection include continuous monitoring and research, bycatch reduction through improved fishing practices, pollution control, disease surveillance and rapid response, as well as public awareness and international policy advocacy to strengthen legal protections for pinnipeds.
Antarctica is one of the world's last frontiers. It makes me sad that even here, nothing is safe. In some ways it is even worse in the north, where the Arctic has lost so much sea ice. Already great powers are sharpening their wits and tools in order to exploit it more effectively.
General Mitigation and Adaption Measures
Because of the immense impact the Cryosphere has on our weather and climate it is currently the focus of intense study. Indeed, it seems to me that the more we refine our monitoring and methods, the more clearly we can see our imminent demise. However, our fate is not yet sealed, if we act NOW. It’s true that the inbuilt momentum in the normally slow acting Polar Systems will mean our actions may not prevent global warming, BUT we still have the opportunity to slow it down and to ameliorate some of its worst effects.
Many
countries are taking meaningful steps to address climate change, but Norway
is both highly exposed to climate change and unusually active in
responding to it. Rapid warming of Arctic regions,
has made climate impacts impossible to ignore. At the same time, Norway
has used its wealth, scientific capacity, and strong environmental
culture to implement ambitious mitigation and adaptation strategies. The
following examples illustrate the breadth of its approach.
Norway as a Case Study in Climate Action
Mitigation Measures
Reducing emissions remains the most effective way to slow the rate of climate change. Norway, like many other countries, is reducing its dependence on fossil fuels — but it is doing so at a scale and pace that make it a useful model.
Renewable Energy
Norway invests heavily in renewable energy and aims to reduce its carbon footprint while managing natural resources responsibly. Around 98.5% of its electricity comes from renewable sources, primarily hydropower and wind. Even coal-dependent regions in the far north are transitioning to cleaner energy, despite limited winter sunlight — as shown in this video example.
Transport
Norway is a global leader in Electric Vehicle uptake, with over 80% of new car sales now electric, supported by extensive charging infrastructure and strong government incentives. Beyond road transport, Norway is also pioneering electric and hybrid vessels, especially on routes to sensitive Arctic regions such as Svalbard. At least one vessel serving Svalbard is fully electric, with several hybrid or battery-assisted ships already in operation.
Other Emission Reduction Policies
Methane is 20–80 times more potent than CO₂ and contributes to roughly 30% of current warming. Norway is among the 150 countries that have signed the Global Methane Pledge, committing to a 30% reduction by 2030. It monitors methane emissions from oil and gas operations, agriculture, and waste, while supporting leak detection and repair programmes and investing in methane-mitigation technologies. For agricultural strategies, see this overview. Norway also enforces strict regulations on diesel engines and shipping fuels, promotes cleaner alternatives such as LNG and biofuels, and supports the use of particulate filters and other emission-control technologies.
Protecting Biodiversity
Norway enforces strict regulations and monitoring to protect vulnerable Arctic habitats. The Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement currently prevents commercial fishing in the high Arctic until it can be done sustainably, and Marine Protected Areas in Canada, Greenland, and Russia safeguard walrus, narwhal, and polar bear habitat. Norway also enforces strict limits on shipping, tourism, and development in the Arctic, including a ban on heavy fuel oil, mandatory Polar Code compliance, and speed limits to reduce whale strikes.
Resource Extraction Restraint
Norway is cautious about deep-sea mining and rare-earth extraction, prioritising environmental assessments and precautionary principles before permitting new activity.
Monitoring and Research
Norway invests heavily in climate research and has established a number of dedicated facilities. The Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System (SIOS) serves as a major research hub for the region. On air quality, NILU (the Norwegian Institute for Air Research) operates Arctic monitoring stations tracking black carbon and aerosols, with research focused on source identification, atmospheric transport, and deposition on snow and ice. Norway also conducts research into cleaner combustion technologies and implements operational measures such as reduced ship speeds to limit black carbon emissions. Norwegian scientists additionally lead internationally recognised work on glaciers, permafrost thaw, and sea-ice dynamics.
International Collaboration
Norway contributes to the Arctic Council's Working Group on the Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME) and the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC). The Arctic Council brings together all circumpolar nations and sets guidelines for shipping, emergency response, biodiversity protection, and more — an overview of its working groups can be found here.
Can’t see it? Click here
Partnerships with Indigenous Peoples
All six Indigenous groups in the Arctic — including the Inuit, Sámi, and Aleut communities — have permanent representation on the Arctic Council. Indigenous communities co-manage wildlife, contribute traditional ecological knowledge, and lead the monitoring of polar bears, walrus, and caribou across the region.
Not bad for a country with just under six million people. While much of Norway’s prosperity still comes from fossil‑fuel extraction, and that irony is hard to miss, it has used that wealth to invest in its future rather than on building monuments or starting wars. Still, money alone isn't the only explanation.
Why it Works in Norway
Norwegians see climate change unfolding first hand. They live at the front line of a rapidly warming Cryosphere, just as Australians live at the front line of heat, drought and fire. There is no need to persuade people that climate change is real. They also have a well‑educated population with strong cultural ties to the natural world, especially among Indigenous communities of the North. That kind of environmental consciousness isn’t limited to wealthy countries. Norway has another advantage too.
Nordic countries are blessed with a political culture which emphasises consensus and long‑term planning. This contrasts with more adversarial systems, where climate measures can become politicised and vulnerable to reversal. I am thinking here of Australia's Carbon Pricing Mechanism introduced by the Gillard Government in 2012, but amid a scare campaign about costs, was promptly reversed by the Abbot Government in 2014, arguably setting back Australia's emission reduction ambitions by at least a decade. It seems to me that in our system, the main role of Opposition parties is to simply oppose everything, irrespective of whether it is good for the country or not, or at the every least to see it in only very narrow economic terms.
Will doing all this Save the Planet?
It is true that even if humanity stopped all emissions today, the Cryosphere would not respond for decades and even centuries. The predictions which underpinned international agreements to reduce emissions and keep warming below 1.5 – 20 C by 2030 made in Kyoto (1997) and the Paris Agreement in 2015, have not only been proven correct, but are manifesting themselves much sooner than expected. Some processes now set motion such as warming generally or sea ice decline, may already be irreversible, but that doesn’t mean it’s too late or that we should give up.
It means that every action we take will help and the longer we delay, the more difficult it will be. The BRACE project being conducted by the University of Washington to determine whether the costs of mitigation and adaptation outweigh the cost of more heroic measures further down the track, comes out firmly in favour, even on economic terms – let alone on other grounds such as the unforeseen consequences involved in measures like geoengineering, on the side of acting sooner rather than later. If only penguins could vote!
It's Not All Gloom and Doom
I don't want to finish this post on such a depressing note. Despite the gloomy picture above, there are some good things happening. Here's a short list. Unless otherwise indicated, these examples are drawn from the pages of the International Energy Agency.
Clean Cooking in Africa — Around 1,000 delegates met in Paris last year and secured pledges for $USD 2.2 billion to provide clean cooking for one million people in Africa.
Heat Pumps — Uptake has been increasing, especially in Nordic countries and France, and is being actively promoted in Germany, Italy, the USA and China. Heat pumps are not only 3 –5 times more energy -efficient than traditional heating and a useful buffer against volatile fossil fuel prices — they can also act as a battery, absorbing excess solar energy produced during the day.
Electric Vehicles — Norway remains the global leader in EV adoption, with an estimated 97% of new cars sold there now being electric. But the most remarkable story in sheer scale is China, which crossed the 50% mark for the first time in 2025 — meaning that in the world's largest car market, more than half of all new cars sold are now electric. This has been supported by government subsidies and tougher emissions regulations.
Solar Fencing — Germany, which already had plug-in balcony solar panels when I visited in 2024, has now developed solar fencing which is not only cheaper than wooden fencing but also generates electricity.
Home Batteries — Australia installed 100,000 home battery systems in just 17 weeks thanks to government subsidies.
Climate Legal Cases — The legal landscape around corporate climate responsibility has been evolving rapidly, if not always in a straight line. In Urgenda Foundation v. Netherlands (2019), the Dutch Supreme Court ordered the Dutch government to reduce national emissions by 45% by 2030, establishing that states have a legal duty to protect their citizens from climate harm. (Apologies I can't give you the links for these, Firefox won't let me).
In another case, Milieudefensie v. Shell, a Dutch district court made history in 2021 by ordering Shell to cut its global emissions by 45% by 2030. However, in November 2024 the Court of Appeal overturned that specific target — though it upheld the important principle that large corporations have a legal duty of care to help combat dangerous climate change. Milieudefensie has since filed a further appeal with the Dutch Supreme Court, so the story is not over yet. (Again I can't give you the links for these, possibly because the matter is still in the courts).
The German Constitutional Court (2021) also ruled that the government must strengthen its climate targets to protect future generations.
The youth-led Juliana v. United States case, though ultimately dismissed, set a powerful precedent and inspired similar actions in Australia. Courts in Canada and Australia have also affirmed Indigenous land rights and stewardship as central to conservation efforts.
Migratory Species — In a major boost for wildlife, the UN's CMS COP15, held in Campo Grande, Brazil in March 2026, granted protection to 40 new migratory species including the cheetah, snowy owl, giant otter, and great hammerhead shark. Brazil now holds the CMS presidency and will carry this momentum forward over the next three years. While the backdrop is sobering — nearly half of all listed migratory species are in population decline and almost one in four face extinction — the strengthened framework offers real hope for other migratory species too, including the great whales that migrate annually between Antarctic feeding grounds and warmer northern waters.
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