Are California's wildlife moving to escape a changing climate?

Nature · Published 25 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Scientists are re-surveying California's terrestrial vertebrates to see how they have shifted since the early 1900s. This video explores whether these movements are a collective response to global warming or individual reactions to local habitat changes.

Scientists are monitoring various wildlife populations spanning the Central Valley, Yosemite National Park, and Mono Lake. The data reveals significant shifts in both latitude and elevation for various terrestrial vertebrates over the last century.

The study aims to determine if these migrations are driven by broad phenomena like global warming or specific, localized habitat shifts. To manage these changes, the California Wildlife Habitat Relationship (CWHR) system uses 30-meter pixel raster datasets to predict suitable habitats for conservation and land-use planning.

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