They're All Ears

These Fennec foxes have ears nearly twice their body size. This structure doesn’t just have to do with its function (hearing), but also with temperature regulation.

This North African species, native to the Saharan desert, uses its huge ears to listen for prey underground and to cool down in the hot desert. In fact, animals that live near the equator tend to have larger extremities and longer limbs in comparison to small body size because the larger surface area allows heat to escape quicker. This trend is known as Allen’s rule.

• Where might we find creatures like this?
• With global warming, will the extremities increase in size as temperature on Earth does?

Download an SOS playlist for this module.

Koppen-Geiger Climate Changes - 1901 - 2100

This model shows how biomes may move in reaction to climate change, which would affect the distribution of habitats for organisms.

For SOSx use Climate Model: Temperature Change (RCP 2.6) - 2006 - 2100.

Land Surface Temperature - Real-time

Used with the Latitude and Longitude Overlay, students can observe global temperature trends, such as the location of the tropics.

Protecting Wildlife in a Changing Climate

This video shows how animals must adapt to climate change.

Tropical Widening

This dataset highlights the latitudes where animals with large extremities (such as the Fennec fox) might be found, as well as the fact that the tropics are expanding due to climate change.

For SOSx use Forest Change (Extent, Gain, and Loss) - 2000 - 2014.