News Animals

A little climate change goes a long way in the tropics

In hot places, even minor warming could rev up metabolism in animals that don’t generate their own heat

By Susan Milius

- More than 2 years ago

While biologists worry primarily about global warming’s effects on life in the Arctic, a seemingly paradoxical result of climate change may be sneaking up on metabolically sensitive creatures in the tropics.

HOT, HOTTER Temperatures have risen more in the Arctic than in the tropics, but the metabolic effects of temperature change may be disproportionately more disturbing to some residents of warmer climates, such as this caiman lizard.