The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conserves our nation’s heritage of wild things and wild places, which are threatened by forces such as habitat destruction and fragmentation, invasive species, and water scarcity.

Now, worldwide scientific consensus tells us that human activity is changing the climate system itself. As climate changes, the abundance and distribution of wildlife and fish will also change. Some species will adapt successfully to an abruptly warming world; many will struggle; and others will disappear.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports in their “Summary for Policymakers of the Synthesis Report of the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report” that “(w)arming of the climate system is unequivocal, as is now evident from observations of increases in global average air and ocean temperatures, widespread melting of snow and ice, and rising global average sea level.”

The Challenge

A basic biological fact is that species’ abundance and distribution are dynamic, relative to a variety of factors, including climate. As climate changes, the abundance and distribution of wildlife and fish will also change. However, in wildlife management, it is difficult to estimate with any degree of precision which species will be affected by environmental change, or exactly how. The Fish and Wildlife Service is monitoring our trust resources to see how they are affected by the changing climate.

What We're Doing

In general, Service programs are already addressing climate change. Read more about our actions.