Climate Change and Impacts on Biodiversity on Small Islands

Abstract

The Pacific Islands region is a sensitive indicator of projected climate change in the twenty-first century. This chapter provides comprehensive information on climate change and how it impacts on biodiversity in the Pacific Island countries as it is ironically one of the most vulnerable regions in this regard. The islands of the Pacific region hold three of the 35 global biodiversity hotspots with large numbers of endemic species. The case study highlights the potential impacts of climate change on terrestrial vertebrate species found in 26 Pacific Island countries. The aim of this case study was to investigate the distribution of terrestrial vertebrate species across these countries and identify those species that were most at risk of extinction due to them being present on only one or a few islands that had previously been classified as being most susceptible to climatic change. The results show that 674 of the islands hosted at least one terrestrial vertebrate species that was either vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered. A total of 84 terrestrial vertebrate species are endemic to this region, and many of them occupy one island only, increasing their chances of extinction.