The Endangered Series

The Endangered Series is a tribute to wildlife threatened by global warming, and is currently on display at the Peggy Notebaert Museum in Chicago.

The World Conservation Union (IUCN) Red List of threatened species currently lists over 300 species that are directly affected by climate change.As the climate becomes warmer, species around the world are being forced to move into new ranges or alter habits as they respond to changes in the temperature and timing of seasons.

Rising temperatures have already affected the polar ice edge ecosystem, the habitat of seals, penguins, polar bears and many others. They are threatened by the decline of food sources such as Krill, and the elimination of breeding grounds due to the extensive melting of ice shelves. Rising sea levels threaten the lives of coastal wildlife such as manatees and sea turtles, due to the erosion of wetlands, beaches, and the increase of saline in freshwater.

Our global ecosystem is based on an intrinsic balance of nature in which all species interact to produce a stable, continuing system of life on earth. This state of equilibrium is being disrupted at an alarming rate. Without action, climate change will cause the extinction of countless species and destroy some of the world’s most precious ecosystems.

- Amy Lowry