Stray
cat explosion joins list of evils blamed on global warming
James
Cowan, CanWest News Service
Published: Wednesday, August 01, 2007
An
explosion in Toronto's stray cat population is the latest phenomenon being blamed
on global warming, joining a growing list of evils that includes increases in
hay fever and seal mating as well as decreases in the supply of maple syrup and
Bulgarian prostitutes.
While
climate change is frequently cited as the cause for hurricanes, tornadoes and
droughts, not all of its alleged effects are Biblical in proportion. The Toronto
Humane Society recently announced its shelter is filled to capacity and cited
global warming as a possible cause of the overcrowding.
Lee
Oliver, a Humane Society spokesman, said the warmer weather appears to be giving
cats a chance to mate three times each year instead of the usual two.
"Cats
are now copulating in February, which is supposed to be a really cold month,"
Mr. Oliver said. "But animals are getting out because it's relatively warm,
their internal signals seem to be telling them that it is time to mate because
the warm weather's coming, and so we're seeing an earlier litter."
Mr.
Oliver said the February fornication produces a litter in late March or early
April with broods following in May and August. And while each year's first batch
of kittens used to be smaller, the Humane Society is now finding all three litters
are roughly the same size.
"The
less hardy cats who may have waited until the warmer weather are now mating sooner,"
Mr. Oliver said.
The
result has been a sharp increase in the cat population. The Humane Society last
year had to find homes for roughly 6,000 cats, compared with 3,000 five years
ago.
Durham
University researchers also report Scottish grey seals are having more sex thanks
to global warming. Male seals tend to have harems of 10 to 15 females, keeping
them close to guard against unwanted suitors. As drinking water becomes scarce,
the females must travel further afield and other males are able to seduce them.
But
not everyone's love life has been improved by climate change. Brothel owners in
Bulgaria are now reportedly having trouble attracting workers. The owners claim
the best prostitutes have moved to ski resorts, where they entertain tourists
who cannot ski because of a lack of snow.
"We
have hired students, but they are temps and nothing like our elite girls,"
Petra Nestorova, who runs an escort agency in Sofia, told the United Kingdom's
Metro newspaper.
Business
has also dropped off for American maple syrup producers, who say global warming
means they must begin their harvest earlier each year. In
Ohio,
buds appeared on maple trees last January, meaning producers in the state were
unable to tap their trees at all.
While
robbing the world of maple syrup, global warming may be giving us more poison
ivy. Experts at Duke University found increased levels of carbon dioxide -- a
greenhouse gas -- made poison ivy grow larger and produce more of its skin-irritating
chemical. Separate studies have suggested that global warming also allows ragweed
and other plants to flower longer, making life worse for sufferers of hay fever
and other allergies.
National
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