This interactive resource compiles millions of observations into maps and graphs to show how the ranges of hundreds of North American birds may be affected by climate change.
Students can examine the current and projected ranges and climate vulnerabilities of different bird species, follow links to see details about each bird, listen to their songs, and use the search tool to learn more about impacts in their specific zip code or state.
Teaching Tips
Positives
The easy-to-use interactive map displays information based on varying degrees of global warming that students can select and compare.
The vulnerability graph visually illustrates the importance of limiting global warming.
Simply clicking on terms like "season" and "range" displays the definition of the term.
Additional Prerequisites
The data for the interactive map is not yet available for winter.
Scrolling over each bar in the vulnerability tool displays a specific bird species and how much of its range has been lost, gained, or maintained.
To best use the interactive vulnerability chart, students should have a basic understanding of the North American biomes.
Differentiation
Using the vulnerability tool, students can investigate why some birds are more vulnerable than others and discuss their hypotheses in groups.
Biology students could use this tool to learn more about birds in their local area and investigate how this loss of habitat may affect local ecosystems, biodiversity, and ecosystem resilience.
This resource can also be used in math classes during lessons about data visualization and reading graphs and charts. Have students graph out the number of North American bird species affected by climate change in different warming scenarios or the habitat gained, maintained, and lost for different species at differing levels of warming.
By inputting your zip code or state into the Birds and Climate Visualizer, students can learn more about the climate policies in your state or county and how those changes may affect birds and people. Consider using this tool in a social studies or civics class to discuss the laws and regulations that may affect wildlife habitat and human health.
To extend the lesson, have students scroll to the bottom of the resource to learn more about what can be done do to take climate action and help the birds. Have students compare these solutions to the most impactful climate solutions identified by Project Drawdown.
Scientist Notes
The resource raises awareness of how climate change is affecting birds throughout North America. It includes a map where students can investigate various warming scenarios to gauge and illustrate how vulnerable these birds are to shifting climatic patterns. The climate modeling and attribution in the resource employed proper scientific evidence and datasets, and this resource is great for education.
Standards
Mathematics
Statistical Reasoning: Statistics and Probability (6-8)
7.SP.C.5 Understand that the probability of a chance event is a number between 0 and 1 that expresses the likelihood of the event occurring. Larger numbers indicate greater likelihood. A probability near 0 indicates an unlikely event, a probability around 1/2 indicates an event that is neither unlikely nor likely, and a probability near 1 indicates a likely event.
Science and Engineering
ETS1: Engineering Design
HS-ETS1-4 Use a computer simulation to model the impact of proposed solutions to a complex real-world problem with numerous criteria and constraints on interactions within and between systems relevant to the problem.
LS2: Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
MS-LS2-4 Construct an argument supported by empirical evidence that changes to physical or biological components of an ecosystem affect populations.
HS-LS2-1 Use mathematical and/or computational representations to support explanations of factors that affect carrying capacity of ecosystems at different scales.
LS4: Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity
HS-LS4-6 Create or revise a simulation to test a solution to mitigate adverse impacts of human activity on biodiversity.
Social Studies
Geography
Geography 1 (D3): Students understand the geography of the United States and various regions of the world and the effect of geographic influences on decisions about the present and future by describing the major regions of the Earth and their major physical, environmental, and cultural features using a variety of geographic tools, including digital tools and resources.
