Norfolk’s butterflies, bees, bugs, birds, trees and mammals are at major risk from climate change as temperatures rise – according to new research from the University of East Anglia.
Researchers carried out the first in-depth audit of its kind for a region in the UK to see how biodiversity might be impacted in Norfolk as the world warms.
The study finds that the region’s Swallowtail Butterfly, which can’t be found anywhere else in the UK, is at risk – along with three quarters of bumblebee, grasshopper and moth species.
Dr Jeff Price analysed local populations of 834 species found throughout Norfolk to show how they might fare as climate change reaches 2°C - the upper end of the UN’s Paris Climate Agreement goals. He also looked at what will happen at 3.2°C - the current global trajectory if countries meet their international pledges to reduce CO2.
Read more at University of East Anglia
Photo credit: 1588877 via Pixabay