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In this paper, we identified the following potential physical impacts of climate change on North Carolina (NC): a.) An increase in sea level would have a significant negative effect on the NC coastal region leading to flooding, erosion and increased salinity; b) Potential increases in intensity and/or frequency of Atlantic hurricanes will have direct, negative impacts on NC's coastal plain; stronger hurricanes will extend their reach to the Piedmont and mountains leading to heavy rainfall, possible flooding, and landslides in the mountains; c.) The temperature increase in NC is likely to be uneven due to the state's complicated physical geography and influences from atmospheric motion and processes in nearby states; d.) Other effects of rising temperatures are heat waves during the summer months, which will have significant impact on agriculture, health, and air quality. The impact of global warming on NC cannot be ignored or overestimated. For example, projections for Atlantic hurricanes are highly uncertain, and could therefore be easily under/over-estimated. More research is needed to improve the weather and climate models, computing facilities, and observations, so that effects of global warming on the weather in North Carolina, with its distinct geographical areas, can be identified and more precisely predicted. Recommendations for concrete actions are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natural disasters can negatively affect primate population demography and social group structure. A clear understanding of these effects has important implications for wildlife conservation. The worst snow storms in nearly five decades hit portions of southern and central China between January 10 and February 6, 2008, presenting a unique opportunity to observe their immediate effects on a previously studied group of Hubei Golden Snub-nosed Monkeys (Rhinopithecus roxellana hubeiensis) in temperate forests in Shennongjia Nature Reserve, Hubei Province, China. We recorded social and demographic characteristics of the group before and after the snow storms. The average group size decreased from 270 individuals before the storms to 197 individuals after the storms, a reduction of 27.2%. Adult females (30.1%), juveniles (38.1%) and infants (55.4%) suffered higher mortality than did adult males (15.7%). Despite age and sex-based differences in mortality, the ratios of adult males to adult females, adults to immatures and adult females to immatures remained similar before and after the storms. However, higher mortality among females, juveniles and infants may reduce the group's long-term potential for growth. Am. J. Primatol. 71:523–526, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]