Comments on: Reporter's Notes: Disappearing Plants

By: Sharon

Sharon — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:48:17 +0000

Nature is going to do what nature is going to do to survive. Sometimes to our our total amazement things that appear to be so bleak are not quite as bleak as we make it out to be. When Yellowstone experienced those devastating fires 20 years ago, people thought the park would not recover. It did recover although not in the same way many may have wanted. Sometimes it's best to see how nature is handling a situation and let her lead the way in dealing with the changes natural or man-made going on around her.

By: Jason

Jason — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:46:14 +0000

Obviously this is something that we need to be concerned with as it is another indication of the dramatic impact that humans have on the environment. Is this something we can stop? I doubt it. Too many Americans are more concerned with their wallets and convenience than with the environment; too many of our population do not recognize the effects of the choices we make. On the positive side, nature is an amazing thing and computer models are only guesses based on variables set by scientists. Some of the assumptions made in this study could be flawed and thus the outcome may be different than predicted.

By: Kerry

Kerry — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:44:05 +0000

I have often thought of moving to San Diego for the better climate and flowering plants. Now you tell me San Diego is coming to me! Seriously, the whole concept is mind boggling. Did the same kind of changes take place before humans took over and started changing the climates? What effects did the shifting continents have compared to changes in temperature? Can super computers actually model all these changes? So many questions….

By: malen

malen — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:41:46 +0000

"The diversity of the phenomena of nature is so great, and the treasures hidden in the heavens so rich, precisely in order that the human mind shall never be lacking in fresh nourishment."

Johannes Kepler

By: spalding

spalding — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:39:54 +0000

I too was taken by the comparison between north and south facing slopes, and the significantly different outcomes based on less than one degree difference in temperature. The reporter's revelation that the future reality is probably much worse is worrisome indeed. Makes me think we need hundreds of modern Johnny Appleseeds to become the "legs" of our indigenous plants and spread their seeds far and wide. Talk about the "living dead," what fate awaits those bristlecone pines in tens of thousands of years?

By: Amy

Amy — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:37:28 +0000

It's truly amazing to think about how many connections there are in an ecosystem and how little we are able to predict about what might happen if one tiny aspect changes – a 1 degree temperature change seems so minimal, yet can have a devastating effect on many components of an ecosystem.

By: hilary

hilary — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 20:08:20 +0000

I really liked the comparison of the north and south facing slopes- from the radio clip. That really made the concept more tangible– I will definitly use that on my nature hikes with students (high school science teacher).

By: Eric

Eric — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 20:07:56 +0000

While I'm not thrilled about the changes described in the radio segment and the blog, I'm not terribly surprised. I'm ambivalent about ways that we should approach the problem – certainly the public needs better education on what plants are native and what plants are not… Should we start a campaign encouraging people to only plant native plants? What would that do to for our local plant nurseries? Of course the problem is bigger than native vs. non-native; individuals can only do so much against global climate change. Should we replant natives further north or at higher altitudes? What about the natives that live there? Our future may be simply a series of greenhouses showing us what our environment used to look like…

By: JIm Knight

JIm Knight — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 20:07:08 +0000

Think we need more information to determine if plants are really disappearing over the long haul. Guess you have to be buying in to Global Warming. Need to do my own personal research to see if this is really happening.
Jim

By: Deb

Deb — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 20:06:45 +0000

The findings are disturbing – however, knowing about prior disasters humans have created by mucking with natural progressions (whether we like them or not; whether we contributed to them or not)makes me feel very dubious about us moving species and hence ecosystems because we "think" we are "doing the right thing".