The effects of climate-change-induced drought and freshwater wetlands

By:  and 
Edited by: B.A. Middleton

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Abstract

Drought cycles in wetlands may become more frequent and severe in the future, with consequences for wetland distribution and function. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [IPCC], Managing the risks of extreme events and disasters to advance climate change adaptation, 2012. Online: http://ipcc-wg2.gov/SREX/images/uploads/SREX-All_FINAL.pdf, climate-change is likely to affect precipitation and evapotranspiration patterns so that the world’s wetlands may have more frequent episodes of extreme flooding and drought. This chapter contributes to a worldwide view of how wetland processes may be affected by these predicted changes in climate. Specifically, the occurrence of drought may increase, and that increase may affect the critical processes that sustain biodiversity in wetlands. We include specific examples that explore the effects of drought and other climate-change factors on wetland function in various parts of the world. In a concluding section we discuss management strategies for climate-change in wetlands. The synthesis of information in this chapter will contribute to a better understanding of how climate-change-induced drought may affect the function and distribution of wetlands in the future.

Publication type Book chapter
Publication Subtype Book Chapter
Title The effects of climate-change-induced drought and freshwater wetlands
DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-4494-3_4
Volume 1
Year Published 2012
Language English
Publisher Springer
Contributing office(s) National Wetlands Research Center
Description 31 p.
Larger Work Type Book
Larger Work Title Global Change and the Function and Distribution of Wetlands (SWS Global Change Ecology series)
First page 117
Last page 147
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