Climate Change In The Sierra Nevadas

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I want to start off by introducing The Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. The home of California Golden Trout. This range is located along the border of Eastern California and Western Nevada and occupies thousands of square miles and plays host to thousands of animals and plants. Many of these species are only found in regions within the Sierra Nevadas. These species are called specialists because their climatic, biotic, and environmental needs are only met in the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. For example, The California Golden Trout are only found in the Sierra Nevadas.

This does, however, cause concern for most biologists. The region is under heavy watch as it is rapidly being affected by climate change. Specifically changes in snow coverage, melting glaciers, warming temperatures, and habitat degradation  As stated in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Summary, which synthesizes data in order to provide risk assessments on climate change, "Mountain glaciers and snow cover have declined on average in both hemispheres". This is an important issue because rainfall, snowpack, glaciers and spring melts in the Sierra Nevadas account for about 65% of California's water supply (Ca.Gov).  Meaning that the changes occurring in the Sierra Nevadas not only have a local impact but a state, regional, and national impact as well.

Another reason why the Sierra Nevadas are under careful watch is because there are thousands of square miles of dense forests. These forests create an extremely large carbon reservoir that is sensitive to climate change, invasive species, and more frequent natural disasters such as wildfires. According to an article put out by the USDA Forest Service, shifts in the dynamics of early snow melt and longer dry season lead to rising temperatures and increases the chances of large wildfires. This aids in speeding up climate change because carbon released from frequent wildfires is a catalyst for increasing temperatures.

Dettinger et al., 2004

The consensus of climate change in the Sierra Nevadas is also supported by an article that projects 21st century change. This article projects a 3 degree Celsius rise in temperature for the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. This rise in temperature will be enough to "change the rivers, landscape, and ecology of the Sierra Nevada, yielding substantial changes in extreme temperature episodes" (Dettinger et al., 2004).  From this information we can see how the Sierra Nevadas are being affected by climate change and how this contributes to positive feedback in the region. Rising temperatures and increased carbon in the atmosphere are the physical and chemical basis of climate change. These factors increase the length of the dry season, change the landscape, and disrupt the phenological events of many organisms which then positively feedback into the detrimental cycle of climate warming.

Since the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range is home to The California Golden Trout, the impacts of climate change on the Sierra Nevadas directly impact the present and future of trout species. It is important to understand the surrounding conditions and mechanisms behind climate change in the Sierra Nevadas in order to aid in our understanding of why and how California Golden Trout are being affected by climate change.