In Mongolia the effects are stark.
Among other consequences, deep freezes like the one that killed Zandan’s herd—known as dzuds—have been growing more frequent and intense.
They used to occur about once every 10 years, but there have been six in the last decade or so, according to the United Nations.
On the Mongolian steppe, climate change pushes herders to the brink
Bad winters in Mongolia. One of Steve’s favorite places.
The biggest tie between UV color and snakes? The snake’s ecology, or the relationship between it and the environment it lives in. For example, arboreal snakes—snakes that live in trees and tend to be nocturnal—had the most UV color. Why? Crowell surmises it has to do with camouflage.
Birds, which can also see UV color, are one of snakes’ biggest predators. Arboreal snakes move around and hunt at night, and sleep during the day. Having a lot of UV color at night isn’t a big deal. But having it during the day is potentially protective: Leaves, lichens and epiphytes—plants and plant-like organisms that grow on other plants, such as ferns and orchids—can also reflect a lot of UV light. Similarly, having UV color would conceal you during the day when birds are looking for something to eat.
Snakes’ secret language of ultraviolet color: A hidden world of predator evasion and camouflage
One of Steve’s favorite animals.
We’ve had some strangely harsh winters in western interior Alaska lately, characterized by deep snows and cold temperatures, often combined with brief thaws that create ice crusts in the snowpack. These harsh winters seem to be happening more frequently in recent years, and have caused some major setbacks in efforts to reintroduce Wood Bison to the area.