Home▸Ecology & Conservation Biology▸Escalator to Extinction: Mountain Reserve Climate Tracking

Escalator to Extinction: Mountain Reserve Climate Tracking (2D)

2D mountain cross-section model of five species at different starting elevations: warming pushes each thermal comfort band upslope by the same amount, so species already near the summit run out of mountain first — the 'escalator to extinction' effect, tracked live.

Ecology & Conservation Biology2DModerate60 FPS📱 Mobile-adapted⇄ 3D version

A 2D cross-section of a mountain carries five species, each already adapted to a different elevation. As the climate warms, every species' comfortable temperature band is pushed upslope by exactly the same amount — the escalator moves at one speed for everyone. Species that started life near the foot of the mountain have thousands of metres of headroom left to retreat into; species that started near the summit have almost none, so they are the first to find no cooler ground left anywhere on the mountain. Watch the live elevation-vs-extinction-year chart fill in as each population collapses, confirming that starting altitude alone predicts who goes first.

⚙ Under the hood

A 2D mountain cross-section carrying five species at different starting elevations: warming pushes every thermal comfort band upslope by the same amount, so species already near the summit run out of mountain first — the real 'escalator to extinction' dynamic, tracked live against starting elevation.

ecologyconservationclimate changemountain habitatprotected areaspopulation dynamics

2D · HTML5 Canvas 2D · 60 FPS target · runs fully client-side, no install