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Review
. 2014 Jul 21;1(2):115-27.
doi: 10.4161/temp.29651. eCollection 2014 Jul-Sep.

Responses of large mammals to climate change

Robyn S Hetem  1 , Andrea Fuller  1 , Shane K Maloney  2 , Duncan Mitchell  2
Affiliations
Review

Responses of large mammals to climate change

Robyn S Hetem et al. Temperature (Austin). .

Abstract

Most large terrestrial mammals, including the charismatic species so important for ecotourism, do not have the luxury of rapid micro-evolution or sufficient range shifts as strategies for adjusting to climate change. The rate of climate change is too fast for genetic adaptation to occur in mammals with longevities of decades, typical of large mammals, and landscape fragmentation and population by humans too widespread to allow spontaneous range shifts of large mammals, leaving only the expression of latent phenotypic plasticity to counter effects of climate change. The expression of phenotypic plasticity includes anatomical variation within the same species, changes in phenology, and employment of intrinsic physiological and behavioral capacity that can buffer an animal against the effects of climate change. Whether that buffer will be realized is unknown, because little is known about the efficacy of the expression of plasticity, particularly for large mammals. Future research in climate change biology requires measurement of physiological characteristics of many identified free-living individual animals for long periods, probably decades, to allow us to detect whether expression of phenotypic plasticity will be sufficient to cope with climate change.

Keywords: behavioral flexibility; climate change physiology; micro-evolution; microevolution; phenotypic plasticity; physiological acclimation; physiological acclimatization; range shift; temperature.

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Figures

<b>Figure 1</b>.
Figure 1.
Small map: Observed current distribution of the scimitar-horned oryx (Oryx dammah). Large map: Predicted habitat distribution for the scimitar-horned oryx in 2050. Light gray indicates habitats that are presently climatically suitable but are predicted to be unsuitable in 2050. Moderate gray indicates habitats that are presently climatically suitable that are predicted to remain suitable in 2050. Dark gray indicates habitats that are presently climatically unsuitable that are predicted to be suitable by 2050 (adapted from Thuiller et al.22).
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Figure 2. The pelt color variations of the black, common and white springbok. Nychthemeral rhythm of body temperature (mean ± SD) for four black (red line), seven common (blue line) and four white (yellow line) springbok during a hot (A) and cold (B) season. Black bars represent night periods (adapted from Hetem et al.88).
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Figure 3. Nychthemeral rhythm of body temperature (mean ± SD) for five free-living Arabian oryx (gray line) and four free-living Arabian sand gazelle (black line) during both the warm wet (A) and hot dry (B) periods. Black bars represent night periods (reprinted from Hetem et al.124).
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Figure 4. Nychthemeral rhythm of activity for five Arabian oryx during both the warm wet (A) and hot dry (B) periods. Oryx shifted from a continuous 24-h activity with crepuscular peaks during the warm wet period to nocturnal activity during the hot dry period. Activity counts are expressed as a percentage of maximum counts for that animal. Black bars represent night periods (adapted from Hetem et al.169).
<b>Figure 5</b>.
Figure 5.
Photograph of the authors.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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