By Eric Nuse with Steve Wright

Suppose you could resurrect a long ago deceased North Country resident, someone who had a good knowledge and understanding of the outdoors. After a hike through their old stomping grounds I wonder what they might say? Here's a guess.

"What the heck are those big black birds soaring around over the treetops? They sure have a funny-looking head. Who stocked all these cardinals, mockingbirds, doves, hordes of turkeys and gray squirrels? Where are the moose, martin and snowshoe rabbits? Did you bring in these ticks and poison ivy, too? What the heck have you people been doing?"

The same thing-noticeable change-was emphasized for us in late June when the National Wildlife Federation did a presentation to the New Hampshire Hunter and Aquatic Education Instructors-the men and women who teach our young hunters a safe and sane approach to the woods and about fish and aquatic habitats. We asked everyone at the session to write out their own observations of changes in nature where they live. The responses affirmed our own strong sense of change in the way our planet functions: different birds, odd behaviors, more ticks, more storms, higher temperatures, and the list goes on. There are some people who doubt that these changes are caused by humans and our "greenhouse gas emissions," but the scientific facts and what we are seeing on the ground show a very different story.

Last January, I was canoeing on a bay in Lake Champlain. At about the same time, my associate, Steve, was watching Canadian geese make a noisy pass over his house-30 miles from the Canadian border. They should have been long gone by November at the latest.  Is all this a fluke or part of a human-caused global warming trend? If it is a trend, what does it mean for our wildlife in New England and New Hampshire? Is there anything we as conservationists can do to slow it down?

Shortly after I canoed on my favorite ice fishing area the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issued a landmark report. This panel, made up of the majority of the world's top climate scientists stated that the world's average temperature has risen 1.3 degrees F (NH is slightly higher) in the last 100 years. They also predict the average temperature will rise 4 to 11 degrees in the 21st century. This may not seem like much, but the difference between an ice age with mile thick glaciers and today's average temperature is only 6 degrees F. The effect of an 11 degree plus change is almost unimaginable.

To bring the issue of climate change a bit closer to home, in the US, 20 of the hottest years measured have been in the last 25 years. Hunters, anglers and naturalists are reporting-just as the Hunter/Aquatic Education instructors-the northern spread of turkeys, cardinals and turkey buzzards along with less welcome species like poison ivy, opossums and ticks.

The Union of Concerned Scientists predicts that New Hampshire could feel like the typical summer in North Carolina by the end of this century unless we take action. North Carolina? Who wants to move to North Carolina-without a choice?

What does this warming mean for NH wildlife?

There is an old forestry saying- "If you want to know what your woodlot will do in the future, look at what it has done in the past."

Fish

Brook trout need cold, clean and abundant water. This year the Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture, which NH participated in, reported that historic brook trout habitat as measured by the number of intact sub-waterways is only 5% of its historic range. In NH only 3 lakes and 21, or 8%, of the sub watersheds are considered unimpaired. The leading factor hurting our trout is rising water temperatures. At 70 degrees brook trout are impaired and at 75 degrees they are dead. Higher temperatures also make the other impairment factors cited more deadly, including acidification, invasive species, development and low dissolved oxygen.

This sad state of affairs is where we are now. You don't need a PhD in ecology to predict the effect of a 4 to 11-degree increase in temperature will do to brook trout and all other cold-water fish.

Game

Wardens and biologists are seeing an increase in moose mortality caused by winter ticks. Large infestations literally suck the animal dry. "Tick mortality in moose is worse after an early spring followed by a warm, dry fall, so it seems likely that a warming trend will increase tick mortality", says Kristine Rines, Moose Project Leader, NH Fish & Game Department.

Scarier yet is what has happened to the moose population in northwestern Minnesota. In just 25 years the moose population has dropped from 4,000 to 237. The causes: marginal habitat coupled with increased stress due to higher fall and winter temperatures. Dennis Murrey, principle researcher from Trent University, says, "A variety of factors may be contributing to the decline, but ultimately I think the real driving force is the climate..."

New Hampshire's estimated population of moose is 6,000. If temperatures continue to rise moose can move north or up the mountains. But the mountains are only so high and NH only goes so far north.

Song Birds

Northern breeding warblers are shifting their ranges northward, perhaps by several hundred miles according to the NH Carbon Coalition. They also predict that the breeding range of the state bird, the purple finch, could shift out of the state. At the very least the number of nesting finches is likely to be reduced in the coming century.

Species of Conservation Concern

According to the New Hampshire Wildlife Action Plan, "Climate change will affect every species and habitat of conservation concern in New Hampshire." This includes direct impacts like a shift north of species like snowshoe hare and bog lemmings and trees like spruce, fir, aspen and sugar maple. Warming will allow invasive species and pathogens to move north, such as hemlock woody adelid and West Nile disease. Reduction in snow depth will hurt lynx and martin populations.

In principle, it all comes down to one of the fundamentals wildlifers learn in their first wildlife class; change the habitat and you change the animals. We're already seeing the changes, what now?

Call to Action

Some folks have thrown up their hands in frustration. "It's too big, too complex, we don't know enough". Others are in denial, blaming the warming on sunspots, natural cycles, Democrats and aliens. But as one NH Hunter Education instructor told us, "Even if we aren't the primary cause, the steps we should take are still the right thing to do. Conserving non-renewable natural resources for out children is smart, not wasting energy is smart and saves money, and reducing emissions of airborne pollution like acid rain and mercury will directly benefit our health."

Can we reverse things and slow down the warming even if we make a concerted effort? History says yes.

30 years ago air pollution was choking our cities. We reduced ozone, lead, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, vitreous oxides and particulates (soot) by nearly 50% in 30 years and at much less cost than originally thought.

In the mid 1800's we had a similar daunting problem - decimated wildlife populations. Leaders like Theodore Roosevelt, Gifford Pinchot, George Bird Grinnell, Aldo Leopold, Ding Darling and FDR - hunters and fishers all - saw that humans had caused wildlife depletion and habitat destruction on a massive scale. They believed the damage could be reversed.

Reverse it we did, and now the North America wildlife story is the envy of the world. New Hampshire went from a remnant population of deer to sustainable harvest of over 10,000 deer per year. Beaver are in every brook (and a lot of back yard ponds), turkeys are everywhere, and moose are a living symbol of the north woods.

Hunters and anglers led this reformation. They were the conservationists; they did what it took to bring our wildlife back. The question for our age is, do we have what it takes to lead the fight against global warming?

We know what to do, we know how to do it, and we have the technology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in every one of the following categories:

• energy efficiency
• vehicle mileage and emissions
• building design to reduce energy loss
• renewable energy sources
• carbon capture and storage

The National Wildlife Federation proposes we implement the above actions quickly. If we act now to reduce emissions by 2% per year we can cut greenhouse pollution by two thirds in just 50 years! I discovered if I slow down my truck on the interstate from 65 to 55 I save over 2% in fuel. Change a few light bulbs to the new compact fluorescents, turn them off quicker and I am way over my 2% for the year!

We can and should all take actions possible to reduce greenhouse pollution. The Environmental Pollution Agency has a calculator on their web site where you can figure up your carbon footprint. It will show areas to improve and save money to boot!

We also need to act nationally. We need federal legislation to drive a reduction of CO2 by 2% annually. Here is how you can help make this happen:

• Call/write your elected officials in Washington
• Join and support organizations that support reducing greenhouse gases

No matter what, our wildlife is in for increased stress due to climate change. The question is how fast and how warm. Beyond reducing our carbon footprint, the more we can do individually and collectively to improve habitat, eradicate invasive species, reduce all forms of pollution the better our wildlife will be able to adopt. Support for our NH Fish and Game Department both financial and politically is also critical. Sportsmen and women have been doing this for over 100 years. Our efforts are needed now more than ever.

Will you join the National Wildlife Federation and answer the call?

For more information and action steps visit:

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change  www.ipcc.ch
The National Wildlife Federation  www.nwf.org
NH Citizens for Responsible Energy Policy  www.carboncoalition.org
EPA Carbon Calculator   globalwarming.house.gov
NH Wildlife Plan   wildlife.state.nh.us/Wildlife/wildlife_plan.htm

Eric Nuse is a former Vermont Game Warden and a graduate of the University of Maine in Wildlife Management. He currently heads a consultancy working nationally on hunting, trapping and wildlife matters. Eric also servers on the board of Orion the Hunter's Institute. www.huntright.com

Steve Wright is the regional representative of the National Wildlife Federation and the former Director of VT Fish and Wildlife and past President of Sterling College.

The views expressed in this paper are the author's and do not necessarily represent those of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.