A study published in the scientific journal "Nature Communications" revealed that approximately 40% of small mammals worldwide are climate specialists. This research analyzed small mammals from different regions of the planet, seeking to understand how these species respond to the specific climate conditions of their habitats.
The study had the participation of a researcher from FCUP (Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto), contributing to a global analysis of the climate specialization of these animals. The Portuguese participation in this worldwide-scale research brings recognition to the Portuguese scientific community in biodiversity studies.
The results show that climate specialization is particularly frequent among rodents, more specifically among murids, which represent a large proportion of the small mammal species analyzed. This discovery suggests that many of these species may face greater challenges in the face of climate change, given that they depend on very specific environmental conditions to survive.
