We’re already seeing salamanders shrink in size, we’re seeing migratory birds change their migratory routes, we’re seeing species interbreeding now, because of just a small degree of warming.

James Watson, University of Queensland professor and senior author of the report

• Reviews the set of impacts that have been observed across genes, species, and ecosystems to reveal a world already undergoing substantial change
• Identifies a set of core ecological processes (32 in terrestrial and 31 each in marine and freshwater ecosystems) that underpin ecosystem functioning and support services to people
• Finds that of the 94 processes considered, 82% show evidence of impact from climate change in the peer-reviewed literature
• Finds that examples of observed impacts from meta-analyses and case studies go beyond well-established shifts in species ranges and changes to phenology and population dynamics to include disruptions that scale from the gene to the ecosystem