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Studies indicate that changes in precipitation, temperature, cloud immersion, and frequency of disturbance events pose significant threats to tropical montane cloud forests. Their characteristic narrow ranges, slow growth, maturation, and migration rates, inability to compete in disturbed areas, and strict climatic requirements amplify such threats and suggest that impacts may be felt sooner rather than later. Recent population crashes of some of the forests’ more sensitive species provide forboding evidence of the impending consequences. It is a great tragedy that these unique systems, which house extraordinary biotic treasures and supply millions of people with clean water, may be amongst the first victims of climate change. |
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