As scientists, is your work affected by the impacts of climate change?

Yes, some scientific work can be affected by the impacts of climate change – especially scientific research that looks at the environment and plants and animals.

Lots of plants and animals around the world are moving habitats because the climate is changing where they have typically lived before. This phenomenon is known as ‘species on the move’.

In Australia, the water in Eastern Australian Current (known as the ‘EAC’ in Finding Nemo 😊) is warming because of climate change and as a result, the current is travelling further down the east coast of Australia than it used to – bringing marine species with it. For example, the Gloomy Octopus is not typically found in Tassie but has been spotted as far south as Falmouth on the east coast. Some Tiger Sharks have also been seen as far south as St Helens! Scientists who study these ‘species on the move’ now need to change their work to try to understand where species are moving, how fast they are moving, and what these moves might mean for the ecosystems that already exist in these places.

You might like to check out Redmap which is a website where people from all over Australia are invited to log any marine species they see that are new or atypical to coastal areas around the country. Scientists verify these sightings of ‘species on the move’ and the information is stored in a national database so scientists and the community can document how marine life is responding and moving because of climate change.