Mountain ecosystems under threat: scientists warn of consequences of global warming

Mountains are an essential to maintain life on our planet as we know it. They are characterised by a rugged and heterogeneous landscape, often hostile to humans, with very harsh and changing environmental conditions that provide a myriad of ecological niches in small areas. Although mountain species are well adapted to living in extreme conditions, they are very vulnerable to human threats to ecosystems. As mountain ecosystems are very sensitive to global change, they are seen as sentinels of the change.

For example, climate change is modifying and will continue to modify hydrological cycles, with a greater repetition and amplitude of so-called extreme events. Variations in the amount of precipitation (rain and snow) and in freeze-thaw cycles will affect the onset of snowmelt (and thus the length of the growing season) and water temperatures. These disturbances may also provide opportunities for invasive species, parasites and pathogens to colonise these fragile habitats, leading to further changes and losses of biodiversity, as well as further impacts on ecosystem services.

Global change, with all the different pressures described above, causes imbalances in the functioning of the ecosystems of mountains, which lead to changes in biological processes, vital biochemicals and chemicals, critically reducing the health of ecosystems with repercussions on human populations. As mountain biodiversity is the basis of ecosystems’ functioning and the provision of ecosystems services, changes in mountains will have significant impact on human societies. Increased efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, mitigate the effects of climate change, and develop tools for species and habitat conservation and future restoration are therefore essential if we are to effectively reduce the decline in mountain health.