The Oceania region ranges from the lush tropical rainforests of Indonesia to the interior deserts of Australia. The climate is strongly influenced by the ocean and the El Ni�o phenomenon. Small island nations and the coastal regions—where much of the population is concentrated—are very vulnerable to increasing coastal flooding and erosion due to rising sea level. Warming sea temperatures in recent years have damaged many of the region�s spectacular coral reefs, threatening one of the world�s most diverse ecosystems.
Fingerprints
2. Christchurch, New Zealand -- Warmest February on record, 1998. Daily temperatures averaged near 67�F (19.4�C).
43. Fiji -- Sea-level rise. Reports from local inhabitants at 16 sites indicate that the island's average shoreline has been receding half a foot (0.15 m) per year over at least the past 90 years.
44. American and Western Samoa -- Land loss. Western Samoa has experienced shore recession of about 1.5 feet (0.46 m) per year for at least the past 90 years.
67. New Zealand -- Retreating glaciers. The average elevation for glaciers in the Southern Alps has shifted upslope by more than 300 feet (91.4 m) over the past century.
129. Heard Island (Australia) - Rising temperatures; retreating glaciers. Since 1947 the island's 34 glaciers have decreased by 11% in area and 12% in volume, with half the loss occurring in the 1980s. Air temperature has risen 1.3�F (0.7�C) between 1947 and 2001.
Harbingers
18. Indonesia -- Malaria spreads to high elevations. Malaria was detected for the first time as high as 6,900 feet (2,103 m) in the highlands of Irian Jaya in 1997.
48. American Samoa -- Coral reef bleaching.
49. Papua New Guinea -- Coral reef bleaching.
50. Philippines -- Coral reef bleaching.
51. Indian Ocean -- Coral reef bleaching (inclues Seychelles; Kenya; Reunion; Mauritius; Somalia; Madagascar; Maldives; Indonesia; Sri Lanka; Gulf of Thailand [Siam]; Andaman Islands; Malaysia; Oman; India; and Cambodia).
56. Australia, Great Barrier Reef -- Coral reef bleaching.
75. New South Wales, Australia -- Wettest August on records, 1998. On August 15-17, a storm dumped nearly 12 inches (30.5 cm) of rain on Sydney, over 8 inches (20.3 cm) more than what normally falls during that entire month.
87. Indonesia -- Burning rainforest, 1998. Fires burned up to 2 million acres (809,371 hectares) of land, including almost 250,000 acres of primary forest and parts of the already severely reduced habitat of the Kalimantan orangutan.
100. Australia - 2002 - Warmest April on record. This occurred in the context of an average annual temperature increase of 0.9-1.8�F (0.5-1.0�C) per decade over the past century. There has also been an increase in warm days and a decrease in cold winter days.
123. New Zealand - Ocean warming. The oceans around New Zealand have been warming over the past decade at a rate not seen since the 1930s. Over the last century the average ocean temperatures around New Zealand increased by about 1.8�F (1�C), slightly more than the global average. Despite 20 years of cooling from the 1970s through the early 1990s - due to longer and stronger El Ni�o events affecting the regional ocean temperatures - New Zealand�s ocean temperature increase over the 20th century is consistent with the global average upward trend. Sea level along the country�s shoreline has been rising accordingly by an average of 0.04-0.08 inches (1-2 mm) per year.
124. Fiji - Coral reef bleaching, 2000. A new wave of coral bleaching events has been observed during the southern summer in Fiji and on many other South Pacific atolls. Satellite measurements by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association documented unusually high temperatures across much of the Pacific. The 1990s has seen several major bleaching events. Repeated and prolonged bleaching episodes - expected as tropical water temperatures warm with climate change - eventually kill corals and cause a decline in associated marine species.
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