Climate change could kill Calif. plants

Berkeley, Calif. -- A University of California-Berkeley study contends climate change could prove deadly to two-thirds of California's native plants.

The report said 2,300 species found only in California could be wiped out by rising temperatures and altered rainfall. Vulnerable plants could suffer an 80 percent reduction in geographic range by the end of the century, the university said Wednesday in a news release.

"Our study projects that climate change will profoundly impact the future of the native flora in California," UC biologist David Ackerly said. "The magnitude and speed of climate change today is greater than during past glacial periods, and plants are in danger of getting killed off before they can adjust their distributions to keep pace."

Copyright 2008 by United Press International.