The effects of climate change can be seen all around the world, from the oceans to the lands in every single country. Global sea levels are rising, storms are getting more severe, and recording breaking levels of carbon dioxide are all effects of climate change that can be observed today. However, in this report, we are going to be looking at the specific changes in the ecosystems in the Arctic, one of the places that is expected to be most affected by future climate change.

There are many things changing in Arctic ecosystems. It all stems from the rising temperature. Although temperatures are rising in many places in the world, the temperatures in the Arctic are rising at an almost twice as high rate. The rising temperatures negatively impact the rest of the Arctic; the main example is the melting of ice.

The melting of ice is a significant issue, because it directly disturbs main organisms living in Arctic ecosystems. Because the sea ice is currently shrinking, many animal species that rely on the ice to live as their habitat such as polar bears, narwhals, walruses, and many more are in grave danger, as their space to live is constantly shrinking. The depletion of ice in the Arctic also causes an increase in shipping and oil drilling. This is because the lack of ice allows more ships and oil drilling to happen. This will also indirectly affect organisms harmfully. 

The rising temperatures are also disrupting the food chain in Arctic ecosystems. Fish are moving to different parts of the ocean because the water is too warm for them to live in; opportunistic species like the red fox are moving in because of the warmer temperatures and are killing off smaller predators.