Global Warming

Most habitats do not stay the same all the time.

Daily changes to the environment include:
 change from light and heat to dark and cold, as night falls
 change from a high water level to a low water level, as the tide changes
Seasonal changes to the environment include:
 change from hot weather in the summer to cold weather in the winter
 change from long hours of daylight in the summer to shorter days in the winter
 change from lots of vegetation in the summer to bare trees and snow-covered ground in the
winter
Let's look at two examples of how organisms are adapted to such changes.
Limpets
If you have ever been to the seaside and looked for creatures in rock pools, you are likely to
have seen lots of limpets on the rocks.
When the tide is in, limpets move over sea-covered rocks, scraping off tiny bits of seaweed.
When the tide goes out, limpets clamp themselves very tightly against the newly exposed
rock. This makes it difficult for predators to pull them off the rock to eat them. It also stops
the limpets losing water, or being washed away by waves.
Snowshoe hare
The snowshoe hare lives in Canada and other parts of North America.
The snowshoe hare has brown fur during the summer, to help camouflage it amongst the
earth and plants. Its fur is white during the winter, to help camouflage it in the snow. This
adaptation makes it more difficult for predators to see the snowshoe hare, whatever the
season.
Changes in the environment - Extinction
A species becomes extinct when there are no more individuals of that species left. An
extinct species has gone forever.
Here are some of the things that can cause a species to become extinct:
 a new disease
 a new predator
 a change in the physical environment, such as a change in the long-term temperature or
rainfall patterns
 competition from another species that is better adapted, including competition from humans
For example, dinosaurs became extinct millions of years ago. This was probably due to
changes in the environment. But many species have become extinct more recently because
of competition from humans.
The extinct dodo
The dodo was a flightless bird found on the island of Mauritius. It became extinct in the
seventeenth century because of human activities. Humans disturbed the dodo's habitat and
also brought new predators to the island, like pigs and dogs.
Changes in the environment - Humans
Humans are very successful living things. We compete with other organisms for many
natural resources. These include:
 land (for farms, buildings and roads)
 water (for drinking, watering fields, and industry)
Population growth
The world’s population of humans is increasing all the time. In the year 1800 it was about 1
billion, and now it is more than 6 billion (that's 6,000,000,000).
More people mean more use of natural resources, and bigger changes to the environment.
The graph shows population growth over the last 200 years.
Land use
Humans use machines to move large amounts of earth to make new roads and buildings.
We straighten rivers and build walls to stop them flooding. In some countries, such as the

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Netherlands, land is reclaimed from the sea. Barriers are built and water is pumped out.
New dry land forms for people to use.
We also large areas of land for quarries. These are large holes in the ground where rocks
containing useful metals are taken out.
The environment is also changed when land is flooded to make reservoirs for drinking
water or hydroelectric power schemes. The animals and plants that live in the forest or on
the land lose their habitat. They may die out in that region as a result
Deforestation
Humans have been cutting down trees for thousands of years. We do this to clear land for
farming and building, and for wood to use as a fuel or building material.
Forestry is sustainable as long as forests are allowed to replace themselves, or are
replanted after felling, but often this is not done. The result is that the world’s forests are
steadily shrinking.
The maps below show the loss of forest across the world over the last 10 thousand years.
The world's forests
The world's forests 8000 BC
Changes in the environment - Pollution
Living things produce waste materials, such as urine and faeces. Humans produce these,
too, but they also produce other waste materials. These materials can pollute the
environment. They include:
 household and industrial rubbish
 chemicals from industrial processes
 smoke from burning fuels
 harmful gases from burning
Landfill sites
Rubbish is taken to a landfill site
Rubbish does not vanish when it is thrown away. A lot of it is buried in landfill sites. These
may be disused quarries or rough ground that cannot be used for farming or housing. When
landfill sites are full of rubbish, they are covered in soil and planted with trees and bushes.
Recycling rubbish is important because fewer landfill sites are needed, and the materials in
the rubbish are re-used.
Fertilizers
Fertilisers are chemicals used by farmers to help their crops grow well. Rain can wash
fertilizers off the fields and into rivers. This causes water plants to overgrow and block out
the light. Other plants die as a result. They use up oxygen as they rot away, and fish and
other animals suffocate. This process is called eutrophication.
Smog
Smoke from burning fuels makes buildings turn black. With other waste chemicals in the
air, it can form smog. This makes the air hazy, especially over large towns and cities. The
polluted air can make it difficult to breathe.
Acid rain
Acidic gases such as sulfur dioxide are produced when fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas
burn. Sulfur dioxide dissolves in the clouds and causes acid rain. This damages buildings,
trees and harms life in rivers and lakes. It also causes chemical weathering of rocks to
happen much faster than normal.
Changes in the environment - Climate change
Greenhouse effect
Some heat energy from the Earth’s surface escapes into space. If too much heat energy
escaped, the planet would be very cold. However some gases in the atmosphere can trap
escaping heat energy, causing some of it to pass back to the surface.
These are called greenhouse gases, and they keep our planet warm, which is a good
thing. Carbon dioxide is an important greenhouse gas.
Increasing carbon dioxide levels

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Humans burn fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas. The energy released is used to
power cars and other machines, to generate electricity, and to keep buildings warm. The
burning fuel releases waste gases, including carbon dioxide. As the human population
increases, more fuel is used, and more carbon dioxide is released.
Global warming
The extra carbon dioxide increases the greenhouse effect. More heat is trapped by the
atmosphere, causing the planet to become warmer than it would be naturally. The increase
in global temperature this causes is called global warming.8
Prof. Pedro Rasse
Inglés Instrumental
The amount of carbon dioxide in the air has increased a lot in recent years
The average temperatura of the planet has increased in recent years9
Prof. Pedro Rasse
Inglés Instrumental
Climate change
Global warming is beginning to cause big changes in the environment. These include:
 ice melting faster than it can be replaced in the Arctic and Antarctic
 the oceans warming up – their water is expanding and causing sea levels to rise
 changes in where different species of plants and animals can live
The extra heat energy is also beginning to cause large-scale changes in the weather. These
changes in weather patterns around the world are calledclimate chang