A new report from the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) has highlighted critical threats posed by climate change to migratory wildlife globally.
This is of concern because migratory species are described as an ‘early warning system’ for environmental health. Thus, the change in their migratory behaviour is an indication of the health of our planet and indicates ecosystem distress.
The challenge in Asia and India
Asia is a region where this concern is particularly heightened because of rapidly altering habitats, shifting species ranges, and increasing human-wildlife conflicts due to climate and environmental stresses.
Rapid climate warming in the Himalayas is shrinking cold habitats essential for species such as musk deer, pheasants, and snow trout. In Uttarakhand, small mammals are predicted to lose over 50 per cent of their range. This means they are being forced into fragmented patches of healthy habitat, and this comes with a heightened risk of local extinctions.
The report highlights India’s National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem as a key response initiative. This mission tracks long-term wildlife distribution changes across major river basins.
Conservationists stress the need to create secure movement corridors, habitat refuges and the establishment of climate-resilient protected areas both inside and outside current sanctuaries. These are keys to help species adapt and survive.
Asian elephants are one species that is especially stressed. Climate and land-use changes are prompting them to shift eastwards. However, gaps in connectivity mean elephant populations from India and Sri Lanka cannot migrate accordingly. This is causing increased human-elephant conflicts.
The workshop, during which the report was released, has called for integrated landscape planning to maintain and restore connectivity essential for wide-ranging mammals adapting to climate stress.
The meeting addressed how urban expansion and intensified agriculture in Asia are displacing wildlife and imposing new barriers to migration. In Kyrgyzstan, rising livestock numbers degrade pasturelands, pushing herders and wildlife into direct competition.
A global initiative, the Urban Exploration Project, introduced at the workshop, is aimed at monitoring animal movements in human-modified landscapes through GPS tracking in collaboration with local communities. This will generate actionable data on habitat preferences and migration barriers, making it possible for coexistence between people and wildlife in regions that are rapidly urbanising.
Riverine and coastal dolphins in Asia are also under threat. The Amazon heatwave of 2023 illustrated how extreme temperatures can cause mass dolphin deaths, and a similar risk is on the rise for Asia’s dolphin populations. One of the biggest stressors is dam construction, which fragments the population.
Climate change impacts include not only warming but also unexpected cooling events. These are mismatched to the life cycle of species such as Alaskan shorebirds.
Migratory species not only migrate but also provide critical ecosystem services. For example, elephants in Asia help store carbon in jungle ecosystems, while whales transport nutrients across oceans. All these are mitigation factors for climate change.
One of the key recommendations made in the workshop is leveraging the role of indigenous people and traditional knowledge holders to formulate community-based adaptive solutions. This is of particular importance to India with its substantial tribal population.
These findings will be of relevance to the upcoming CMS COP15 meeting in Brazil in March 2026.