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Aussie mammal the first ‘climate change extinction’
Why in news?
- Australia officially declared a Great Barrier Reef rodent extinct on Tuesday.
- Announcement making it the first mammal believed to have been killed off by human-induced climate change.
More about the news
Bramble Cay Melomys:
- Have habitat in small sandy island in northern Australia.
- These have not been spotted in a decade.
- Melomys rubicola considered the Great Barrier Reef’s only endemic mammal species.
- Was first discovered on the cay in 1845 by Europeans who shot the “large rats” for sport.
factor in its disappearance:
- Researchers determined repeated ocean inundation of the cay, a low-lying island on a coral reef over the last decade, which had resulted in dramatic habitat loss.
- Available data on sea-level rise and weather events in the Torres Strait region point to human-induced climate change.
Source
The Hindu