Ecological systems flip catastrophically once crossed thresholds are reached.
Evidence
Moreover, because some environmental systems such as those in certain population systems and river systems have threshold points at which huge jumps in impact occur, unexpectedly crossing such a threshold can lead over time to catastrophic results. For instance, increases in water temperature in areas of the Atlantic Ocean apparently have no discernible effect on the development of hurricanes until a threshold temperature of 26 degrees Celsius is crossed; but once crossed, there is a nonlinear increase in the spawning of hurricanes. Global warming may well already be destined to have such a devastating impact. — Richard J. Lazarus, The Making of Environmental Law, 86
Categorization
- XREF: connects to: Well-intentioned ecological interventions can backfire through unforeseen food chains. — Richard J. Lazarus, The Making of Environmental Law, 73; Rates of population growth and ecological transformation are themselves exponential. — Richard J. Lazarus, The Making of Environmental Law, 81; Small regime shifts change abundance while catastrophic exotic ones flip whole systems — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 1934 (+4 more)
Broader Connections
- Small regime shifts change abundance while catastrophic exotic ones flip whole systems
#expands(0.85) — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 1934 - Disturbance triggers insect outbreaks once populations cross a regulatory threshold
#exemplifies(0.85) — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 1547 - Delayed reaction to distant ecological harm triggers irreversible feedback cycles.
#expands(0.78) — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 2537 - A biological disturbance can buffer a population against a physical disturbance
#qualifies(0.75) — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 1028 - Each social system has its own demographic equilibrium whose breakdown can be catastrophic.
#corroborates(0.72)