Go fish! It s too hot here I m moving to Maine. ...it is becoming extremely hot more often in the summer.

Transcription

1 Go fish! It s too hot here I m moving to Maine....it is becoming extremely hot more often in the summer....lobstermen and women are no longer catching American lobsters in Long Island Sound. It has become too warm for lobsters to live there....poison ivy loves the higher levels of carbon dioxide released from burning fossil fuels....skiers no longer spend their money at ski resorts the winters are too warm and there has been less snow. What if...the yellowbellied sapsuckers aren t adjusting well to the warmer climate and become less common in Northeastern forests....the Northeast s cities experience more storm surges as sea levels rise.

2 How will warmer temperatures change what tree species are able to live in the Northwestern forests? What other seafood might lobstermen and women be able to catch in Long Island Sound instead? What will that mean for ski resorts and shops that rent ski equipment? What does all the extra poison ivy growing along trails and roadsides mean for hikers and people walking their dogs who brush against it? Will the people living in the Northeast have more or less snow gear, like boots and coats, in their closets than they do now? What will higher sea levels mean for people living along the coast? For plants, animals, and birds living in low wetlands? Yellow-bellied sapsuckers make holes in trees and suck out the sap. What will happen to the number of these holes if there are fewer of these birds? What will happen to the flying squirrels and hummingbirds who use the holes made by the sapsuckers?

3 I love this warmer climate!...soybeans grow better with the higher levels of carbon dioxide in the air....there are fewer frosts to kill off mosquitos and other pests. There are a lot of bugs!...hurricanes are more intense....people living in the Northeast s cities suffer more health problems caused by high summer temperatures. There are fewer coldrelated injuries and illnesses in the winter, though....the Northeast has become too warm for the maple trees to make the right kind of sap used to prepare syrup.

4 Soy can be made into useful materials or eaten. Circle the soy products you ve used or eaten. Can you think of some bugs that are helpful to farmers? Edamame Tofu Soy milk Soap Plastics Crayons Can you think of some bugs you would rather not see more of? Newspaper (ink) What will the more frequent summer heat waves mean for people who already have health issues? Damaged buildings, houses, and roads are expensive to repair. How will that affect the economy? What will it mean for maple syrup producers if the Northeast is too warm for maple trees? What might that mean for maple syrup producers in Canada, where it is still cold enough for their maple trees to make the right kind of sap?

5 Image Credits American lobster. Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Steven G. Johnson. Thermometer. Credit: Microsoft Office Software. Poison ivy. Credit: National Park Service. Yellow-bellied sapsucker. National Park Service. Cotton. Credit: U.S. Department of Agriculture. Roiling ocean. Credit: U.S. Global Change Research Program. Mosquito. Credit: National Park Service. Soybean plants. Credit: U.S. Department of Agriculture. Doctor checkup. Credit: Microsoft Office Software. Ski boot. Credit: Microsoft Office Software. Hurricane. Credit: U.S. Global Climate Research Project. Pancakes. Credit: Microsoft Office Software.