TROPICAL insects, amphibians and reptiles will probably never enjoy the status of an environmental poster child, but global warming鈥檚 impact on them can鈥檛 be ignored.
So say Josh Tewksbury of the University of Washington in Seattle and his colleagues. They point out that although the temperate and polar regions are expected to warm much faster than the tropics, cranking up the heat by just a couple of degrees may take a heavy toll on tropical ecosystems. Many tropical insects, for example, reproduce less efficiently if the temperature even slightly exceeds their preferred level.
Tropical frogs, lizards and turtles may be similarly sensitive to warming, especially those living near the forest floor, where there tend to be fewer refuges where they can cool down (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, ).
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