Quote:
Originally Posted by Bored Wombat
Actually the collapse of the Amazon rainforest (and the Boreal forest) is a likely consequence of about 3 degrees of warming. Give or take half a degree.
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The ability of species to survive depends on their ability to adapt. Species have a gene pool diversity and the can move geographically. Thinking that a small 3 degree change in temperature will mean forests will collapse is slightly ridiculous.
Many rain forests exist at the equator, where it should be very hot. Yet at other places where it's not has hot there are deserts. There reasons for that is that temperature isn't very important. Electromagnetic energy is essential for plants, but so is water, and in deserts the absence of vegetation is caused by the insufficient presence of water.
The water cycle start with the evaporation of water from the ocean, but also from the transpiration of plants. I think transpiration of plants account for about 1/5 of all condensed water, so you can imagine that the lacks of vegetation in one place can greatly increase the aridity of surrounding areas.
So, we should be for global warming, but against deforestation.