Recent climate-driven ecological change across a continent as perceived through local ecological knowledge

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Environmental Science
• Climate Change Biology

Background:

• Documenting climate change effects is crucial for mitigation and adaptation strategies.
• Data on climate change impacts on Southern Hemisphere terrestrial biodiversity are limited.
• Measuring certain types of ecological change presents significant challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To utilize local ecological knowledge for a continent-scale understanding of perceived climate change impacts in Australia.
• To gather detailed, place-based observations of climate change effects on biodiversity and ecosystems.
• To complement existing data-derived knowledge with community-based insights.

Main Methods:

• A national web-based survey was conducted targeting individuals with strong environmental connections.
• A custom mapping tool was employed to collect detailed, localized observations of environmental changes.
• Respondents were asked to describe and attribute recent changes within areas they knew well.

Main Results:

• 326 respondents reported widespread climate change impacts on hundreds of species and ecosystems across Australia.
• Perceived impacts spanned from individual organisms (e.g., increased mortality) to community and landscape alterations.
• Observed trends included changes in species abundance, phenology, arrivals/disappearances, and altered ecological interactions.
• A notable proportion of anecdotes indicated cumulative effects of land use and climate change.

Conclusions:

• Local ecological knowledge offers a valuable complement to scientific data for understanding climate change impacts.
• This approach significantly expands the documented examples of climate change effects on Australian biodiversity.
• The findings provide a foundation for further targeted research and inform conservation strategies.