Vultur Gryphus ANDEAN CONDOR 18,000 ft
High in the Andes, the Andean Condor relies on rising thermal air for effortless flight.
Flight Duration & Distance
Condors can currently soar for up to 5 hours and cover over 100 miles without flapping.
Energy Expenditure
Condors flap their wings for only about 1% of their flight time, 75% of which is used at takeoff. Disrupted thermals now make every journey far more taxing.
Sources:
National Academy of Sciences
British Broadcasting Corporation
Smithsonian Magazine
Panthera Uncia SNOW LEOPARD 14,000 ft
Up in the Himalayas, prey climbs ever higher, forcing the Snow Leopard into steeper, more treacherous terrain.
Prey Dynamics
Prey species have shifted their ranges upward by an average of 200 meters (656 feet), driven by changing conditions.
Sources:
National Library of Medicine
One Earth
50%
of mountain species face heightened risks by 2100 as rising temperatures reshape high-altitude ecosystems worldwide.
Sources:
National Library of Medicine
One Earth
Changing seasons on North America’s West Coast gravely challenge this bee’s search for nectar.
Bees Emerge
Glacier Lilies Bloom
Hurried Hibernation
Yellow-faced bumble bees now emerge from hibernation 10 days earlier than in the 1970s due to rising temperatures.
Sources:
Biological Conservation
Richardson Bay Audubon Center & Sanctuary
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Bombus Vosnesenskii YELLOW-FACED BUMBLE BEE 2,000 ft
As ambient temperatures rise, the thermal contrast between prey and terrain diminishes.
Crotalus Adamanteus DIAMONDBACK RATTLESNAKE 800 ft
Infrared Precision
Diamondback rattlesnakes use pit organs to sense infrared radiation, detecting temperature differences as small as 0.003°C.
Sources:
Journal of Experimental Biology
69%
of wildlife populations, from elephants to jaguars, have plummeted—putting clean air, water, and soil at risk, and threatening the ecosystems we depend on.
Sources:
WWF's Living Planet Report 2022
On nesting beaches, warming sands skew sea turtle hatchlings’ sex ratios, tipping future generations out of balance.
Chelonia Mydas GREEN SEA TURTLE 0 ft
Sources:
Florida Museum
International Research on Sea Turtles
Wiley Online Library
Skewed Sex Ratios
Sand temperatures above 31°C (87.8°F) can result in 100% female hatchlings. In the northern Great Barrier Reef, ratios have reached as high as 116 females to 1 male.
Rising Mortality Rates
At constant sand temperatures above 33°C, only 15% of eggs hatch successfully, causing severe embryonic loss.
Hatching Success Decline
Warmer sands produce hatchlings that move up to 40% slower, leaving them more vulnerable to predators on their journey to the ocean.
Rising water temperatures distort beluga echolocation, making navigation and hunting increasingly uncertain.
Delphinapterus Leucas BELUGA WHALE -100 ft
Echolocation Range
Beluga whales rely on high-frequency sounds (40–120 kHz) for navigation and hunting in icy waters. These sounds are vital for detecting prey in challenging environments.
Sources:
Journal of Experimental Biology
90%
of deep-sea species—like bioluminescent fish and octopuses—face warming waters and acidification, unraveling the fragile food webs that sustain ocean life.
Sources:
Inside Climate News
Rising global temperatures could drive up to 30% of Earth's species toward extinction by mid-century. Time is ticking.
Source:
Science.org
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