| Taxa or system | Observed change | References |
|---|
| Australia | | |
|---|
| Rainforest and woodland ecotones | Expansion of rainforest at the expense of eucalypt forest and grassland in Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales, linked to changes in rainfall and fire regimes. | Bowman et al., 2001; Hughes, 2003 |
| Sub-alpine vegetation | Encroachment by snow gums into sub-alpine grasslands at higher elevations. | Wearne and Morgan, 2001 |
| Freshwater swamps and floodplains | Saltwater intrusion into freshwater swamps since the 1950s in Northern Territory accelerating since the 1980s, possibly associated with sea level and precipitation changes. | Winn et al., 2006 |
| Coral reefs | Eight mass bleaching events on the Great Barrier Reef since 1979, triggered by unusually high sea surface temperatures; no serious events known prior to 1979 (see Section 11.6). Most widespread events appear to have occurred in 1998 and 2002, affecting up to 50% of reefs within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. | Hoegh-Guldberg, 1999; Done et al., 2003; Berkelmans et al., 2004 |
| Birds | Earlier arrival of migratory birds; range shifts and expansions for several species; high sea surface temperatures associated with reduced reproduction in wedge-tailed shearwaters. | Smithers et al., 2003; Chambers, 2005; Chambers et al., 2005; Beaumont et al., 2006 |
| Mammals | Increased penetration of feral mammals into alpine and high sub-alpine areas and prolonged winter presence of macropods. | Green and Pickering, 2002 |
| Insects | Change in genetic constitution of Drosophila, equivalent to a 4° latitude shift (about 400 km). | Umina et al., 2005 |
| New Zealand | | |
|---|
| Birds | Earlier egg laying in the welcome swallow. | Evans et al., 2003 |
| Southern beech | Seed production increase in Nothofagus (1973 to 2002) along elevational gradient related to warming during flower development. | Richardson et al., 2005 |
| Fish | Westward shift of Chilean jack mackerel in the Pacific and subsequent invasion into New Zealand waters in the mid-1980s associated with increasing El Niño frequency. | Taylor, 2002 |
| Glaciers | Ice volume decreased from about 100 km3 to 53 km3 over the past century. Loss of at least one-quarter of glacier mass since 1950. Mass balance of Franz Josef glacier decreased 0.02 m/yr from 1894 to 2005. | Chinn, 2001; Clare et al., 2002; Anderson, 2004 |
| Sub-Antarctic Islands | | |
|---|
| Birds | Population increases in black-browed albatross and king penguin on Heard Island; population declines on Campbell Island of rockhopper penguins, grey-headed albatross and black-browed albatross related to ocean warming and changed fishing practices. | Waugh et al., 1999; Woehler et al., 2002; Weimerskirch et al., 2003 |
| Vertebrates | Population increases in fur seals on Heard Island and elephant seals on Campbell Island, linked to changes in food supply, warming and oceanic circulation; rats moving into upland herb-fields and breeding more often on Macquarie Island. | Budd, 2000; Weimerskirch et al., 2003; Frenot et al., 2005 |
| Plant communities | Plant colonisation of areas exposed by glacial retreat on Heard Island; decline in area of sphagnum moss since 1992 on Macquarie Island associated with drying trend. | Whinam and Copson, 2006 |