The droppings that cowbirds and other invaders leave behind can also contain seeds from invasive plants that will sprout, spread and ultimately change the soil so much that some forest salamanders and wildflowers can't survive, experts note.

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Over a two-year experiment, we saw that there was a change in the soil structure as a result of a wetting and drying of the soil in clay-rich soils, and that can increase the amount of structure and hence storage of water.

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And other factors driving global change, like radiation, soil erosion, changing soil conditions and demographic pressures, are also very noticeable in mountain regions.

UNESCO: 83e

For instance, the Hadley Centre for climate research in the UK, published research only this week suggesting that forests will speed up climate change in the future, as the soil will start to emit more greenhouse gases than the trees absorb as the temperature builds up.

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And in some of the world's great winemaking regions, such as California, geological variations mean that the ability of soil to retain or lose moisture can change within distances of a few metres.

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Local temperatures would still change in some places, as would ocean currents, rainfall patterns, soil moisture and photosynthesis.

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