Introduction

Global agriculture relies on a relatively small number of crop species, which have been bred to optimize productivity within a relatively narrow range of environmental variations¹. Moreover, current food security has been achieved through large industrial agriculture, in which large farms often grow the same crops annually, using excessive amounts of pesticides and fertilizers that finally deplete soils, pollute water, cause nutrient loss, decrease biodiversity, and contribute to climate change (CC). On top of the doubt regarding the future environmental impact of agriculture comes the looming threat to yield sustainability caused by CC induced variations in weather patterns². Predictions advise that on a global scale, an increase in land use of ~100 Mha with a tripling of international trade is required by 2050 to meet the future crop needs of 9.8 billion people, without causing any significant change in present cropped land area³. Extreme weather events cause massive damage to crop production.

Living and non-living organisms, their ecosystems, and climatic situations can be considered as dependent components of the world, and their balance is essential for the existence of the world⁴. CC is a persistent and growing global threat to biodiversity and ecosystems⁵. CC affects specific species and the way they interact with other organisms and their habitats, which alters the structure and function of ecosystems and the goods and services that natural systems offer to society⁵. As a primary anthropogenic activity, land-use changes could influence the ecosystem process through altering the physical properties of the land surface, such as the albedo, roughness, and evapotranspiration. Human societies could obtain well-being by improving the provision of ecosystem services, regulating the ecosystem services, and the cultural ecosystem services, including food, freshwater provision, carbon sequestration, and landscape aesthetics that are wanted for human life⁶.

Impact of CC on biodiversity, the organisms cope with changes in their environment by altering their behavior or morphology. Behavioral replies to CC can result from variations in temperature and manifest before changes at the population and species level, such as distribution changes or population declines⁷. Differential alterations in phenology among interacting organisms could drive population declines through reduced reproductive success and/or increased predation or competition^8,9. CC is driving large-scale shifts in species distribution, abundance, and reorganization of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems¹⁰. Geographic range shifts are widespread across taxa and ecosystems. Therefore, the objective of this paper was to review the impact of CC on plant productivity, biodiversity, and ecosystem service.

Development

Impact of climate change on plant productivity

Water use scarcity and drought. Water deficits pose a serious threat to crop productivity and food security in many parts of the world due to poor or erratic rainfall and depletion of groundwater reserves¹¹. Improvements in crop productivity under conditions of limited water availability are vital to meet global food demand¹². CC is predicted to increase the frequency of droughts and floods, both of which will be problematic for food production¹³. Water scarcity and drought are one of the enormous effects on plant growth and plant productivity.

Salinity stress. It is an important yield-limiting factor that poses a significant threat to agriculture worldwide. Salinity is considered one of the leading limiting factors responsible for the growth and production decline of crops throughout the world, principally in arid and semiarid regions¹⁴. Furthermore, it is strongly evident that higher concentrations of salt ions in soil negatively affect plant growth and productivity, the uptake of other necessary ions which plants require for several metabolic and enzymatic activities¹⁵.

High temperature stress. CC-led rises in local and global temperatures pose a significant threat to plant growth and crop production¹⁶. Heat stress can damage all stages of plant growth from germination to reproduction, limiting the productivity of major staple food crops¹¹. The plant reproductive organs and processes leading to seed set are very vulnerable to increasing temperatures. The current information and understanding of the molecular mechanisms that contribute to this temperature sensitivity are ably discussed, which summarizes their regulation of male and female reproductive organ development and fertilization, together with heat-induced abnormalities at flowering¹⁷.

Impact of CC on biodiversity

Behavior and morphology change. One way that organisms cope with changes in their environment is by changing their behavior or morphology. Behavioral responses to climate alteration can result from changes in temperature and manifest before changes at the population and species level, such as distribution changes or population decrease⁷. Behavioral responses include seeking shade or refuge, altering feeding times, changing site use, and shifting circadian or circannual rhythms^7,18. Morphological changes commonly entail changes in body size, for example, increasing summer temperatures have been associated with reduced body size and increased wing length in North American migratory birds¹⁹. The relative impact of CC versus other stressors fluctuates depending on the species or ecosystem. Diverse biological communities and functioning ecosystems are critical to maintaining the ecosystem services that support human well-being⁵.

Phenological change. Phenology, or the seasonal timing of biological events, is a critical part of ecological relationships²⁰ and a primary indicator of species responses to CC²¹. Although changes in phenology are well familiar, trends are far from homogenous²², a result of high variability in climate drivers and phenological responses across habitat kinds^23-25. Phenological shifts in marine and aquatic habitats are less well known in comparison to terrestrial systems, largely due to the difficulty detecting and tracking aquatic organisms²¹. Nonetheless, there have been perfect directional shifts in the timing of seasonal aquatic and marine abiotic drivers, including earlier transitions from winter to spring temperatures²⁶ and previous ice melting and runoff increase^21,27. Marine phytoplankton can respond rapidly to such abiotic changes, resulting in a change of timing of phytoplankton blooms²⁸, which in turn can make a mismatch with secondary consumers and alter the food web structure^27,29. Differential shifts in phenology among interrelating organisms could drive population declines through reduced reproductive success and/ or increased predation or competition^8,9.

Geographic range shifts. CC is driving widespread shifts in species distribution, abundance, and the reform of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems¹⁰. Geographic range shifts are broad across taxa and ecosystems. Northern Hemisphere birds, for example, are decreasing in abundance along species' southern and minor elevation range edges^30,31. Marine organisms have also demonstrated range shifts, in some cases at more quickly rates than in terrestrial systems and in pace with climate velocities. Arctic marine environments are experiencing fluctuations in sea ice cover, increasing temperatures, and ocean acidification, resulting in range shifts for marine fish, arthropods, and marine mammals³².

Biodiversity loss. Globally, biodiversity is being lost and increasingly threatened through a range of anthropogenic actions^33,34. The Convention on Biological Diversity defines biodiversity loss as the long-term or permanent qualitative or quantitative reduction in components of biodiversity and their potential to provide goods and services, to be measured and managed at global, regional, and national levels. The most important drivers behind the current loss of biodiversity are habitat modification, overexploitation, CC, invasive alien species, and chains of extinction, known collectively as the evil five-biodiversity threats. Even if it is difficult to disentangle the effects of CC from other anthropogenic stressors for a range of species, consequently, forecasts may provide insights into the multiple components of CC and their relative distribution fears to global biodiversity³⁵. The current threat from habitat destruction, land use change or fragmentation, and gradual population growth interacts with CC in a nonlinear way so that the negative impacts are higher than expected on biodiversity³⁴.

Impact of CC on ecosystems. The impact of CC on ecosystem-level changes in response to CC are due to direct impacts from CC drivers and interacting effects of species- and population-level responses. It focuses on several key ecosystem-level characteristics and properties affected by CC: primary production; species interactions and emergent properties, including biological invasions; and the impact of extreme events on ecosystem resilience³⁶. Due to prolonged droughts and flash floods brought about by extreme rainfall events, with the changes of monsoon pattern, sea level rise, and increasing temperatures, affect ecosystem services³⁷.

Primary productivity. Almost all life on Earth depends on primary producers, photosynthetic organisms that are the foundation of most food webs and are responsible for producing Earth's oxygen and regulating important components of carbon cycling and sequestration. CC has had erratic effects on primary production across spatial and temporal scales³⁸. Globally, terrestrial primary production increased during the late 20th and early 21st centuries due to the fertilizing effect of increasing atmospheric CO₂, nutrient additions from human activities, longer developing seasonal time, and forest regrowth³⁹. Warming and increased atmospheric CO₂ may also affect belowground biogeochemical processes, such as carbon and nitrogen cycling, which can affect terrestrial production⁴⁰. However, even in energy-limited forests, drought and extreme temperatures could limit of increase in growth⁴¹.

In marine and aquatic systems, phytoplankton are accountable for nearly all primary production and generate almost half of the total global primary production. Phytoplankton growth rates affect CO₂ uptake from seawater and organic carbon export to the deep ocean, and also impact fisheries productivity. In contrast, gradually reduced ice cover at higher latitudes raises sunlight availability to the ocean surface, increasing phytoplankton growing seasons and annual primary production²⁸. Understanding how these changes affect the food web is crucial for maintaining sustainable fisheries.

Species interactions, emergent properties, and biological invasions. Variability in species' exposure and responses to CC are primary driver of changed species interactions. Emergent properties of ecosystems, including community features such as food-web structure and function that are mediated by species interaction, are altering as species shift their distributions and phenologies in response to climate impacts⁴². Many non-native invasive species are opportunistic generalists that can take advantage of changing situations, colonize disturbed areas, and out-compete species, thereby changing community composition, dominance, production, and increasing extinction danger in some cases⁴³.

Moreover, many non-native invasive plants species respond more positively than native plants to concentration CO₂, nitrogen deposition, and temperature, likely increasing their competitiveness under extremely CC⁶. Stronger competitive capabilities will likely lead to higher non-native invasive plant abundance and declines of native species abundances and community diversity⁴⁴. Penetration of non-native species into natural communities has already negatively impacted biodiversity⁴⁴.

Extreme events and ecosystem resilience. CC has changed the duration, magnitude, and frequency of extreme events, including droughts, forest fires, and heatwaves⁴⁵. Many of these actions have significant impacts on ecosystems and interact with other climate-driven alterations, reducing ecological resilience.

More extreme droughts and wildfires, driven by rising temperatures and altered precipitation patterns, affect ecosystem structure and function, particularly in forested ecosystems⁴⁶. Drought weakens tree defenses, increasing susceptibility to other disturbances, including insects, pathogens, invasive species⁴⁷, while drought impacts have direct long-term consequences, drought-facilitated disturbances can result in more instant changes to forest ecosystem structure and function⁴⁸. Increased storm intensity can affect ecosystems and human communities through extreme flooding, erosive waves, and higher storm surges, making recovery from extreme events more challenging. Rising ocean temperatures have also led to periods of extraordinarily warm conditions across the globe, known as marine heatwaves⁴⁹. Increasing ocean temperatures are driving widespread coral bleaching, contributing to coral cover loss, impacting fish communities, and increasing exposure of nearby shores to waves.

Ecosystem services. Diverse biological communities and functioning ecosystems are critical to maintaining ecosystem services that support human well-being⁵. Therefore, CC impacts on species, populations, and ecosystems affect the accessibility and delivery of ecosystem services, including changes to provisioning, regulating, supporting, and cultural services.

Provisioning services. Climate-induced changes in provisioning services, the material goods that people obtain from ecosystems and biodiversity, can have deep effects on human economies and well-being. Surface water scarcities are likely in dry years in some locations⁶. Increasing stream temperatures also affect water quality⁵⁰. These fluctuations will stress water supplies, potentially increasing water treatment costs. Alterations in water supply, along with other climate change impacts, can change agricultural production. Droughts and other extreme events can minimize crop yield and quality⁵¹, with production declines projected for several important crop species as temperatures increase⁵². In freshwater systems, increasing stream temperatures will negatively affect some harvested species. Water, food, wood, and other goods are some of the material benefits people get from ecosystems called provisioning services.

Regulating services. Biodiversity and ecosystems provide important regulation services, such as sequestering carbon, moderating the effects of extreme events, maintaining soil and air quality, and controlling disease spread³⁶. Coastal wetlands are highly productive ecosystems that store carbon^53,54. CC is affecting the ability of ecosystems to provide this service as species range abundances and habitat conditions shift. For example, Aedes mosquitoes, which transmit diseases such as dengue, are expanding their geographic distribution, increasing disease risk⁵⁵. Maintaining the quality of air and soil, providing flood and disease control, or pollinating crops are some of the regulating services delivered by ecosystems. They are often unseen and therefore mostly taken for granted. When they are injured, the resulting losses can be substantial and difficult to restore.

Supporting services. The combination of higher nutrient loading and increasing temperatures is increasing the frequency, duration, and extent of cyanobacteria responsible for damaging algal blooms, which can negatively impact human and animal health. Providing living spaces for plants or animals and sustaining a diversity of plants and animals, are supporting services and the basis of all ecosystems and their services. Ecosystems provide living spaces for plants and animals; they also support a diversity of complex processes that support the other ecosystem services. Some habitats have an exceptionally high number of species, which results them further genetic variation than others. These are known as biodiversity hotspots.

Cultural services. Are the non-material benefits that people obtain from biodiversity and ecosystems, such as cultural identity, recreation, and mental and physical health. Despite their importance to human wellbeing, cultural services have been under deliberated compared to other ecosystem services⁵⁶. There is growing evidence that human health benefits from exposure to natural ecosystems⁵⁷, conversely, climate-driven extremes such as increased temperatures and storms can decline mental and physical human health⁵⁸. The non-material benefits people gain from ecosystems are called cultural services. They include aesthetic inspiration, cultural identity, sense of home, and spiritual experience related to the entire natural environment. Typically, opportunities for tourism and recreation are also included within the group. Cultural services are intensely interconnected with each other and often connected to provisioning and regulating services.

Conclusion

This review was more focused on the effect of CC on plant productivity, biodiversity, and the ecosystem. CC is a pervasive and growing risk to biodiversity, ecosystems, and ecosystem services. CC was shocking the world by hampering agriculture and its products. Poisonous gases and Industrialization cause global warming, which ultimately disturbs the world’s environment. CC has destructive effects on plant growth and yield. Abiotic stresses are the major type of stresses that cause plant growth decline. CC has an extremely significant effect on individuals, populations, and species through changes in behavior and morphology, phenology, and range shifts, and at the ecosystem level through changes in species interactions, primary production and emergent properties, and extreme events. Ecosystems and biodiversity underpin important services to people, thus, these changes impact provisioning, regulating, supporting, and cultural services, with implications for human wellbeing. The effects of CC on biodiversity were made up continuously, often predicting fast-paced extinction of species, loss of natural habitats, and moves in the distribution and abundance of species. Pressures on biodiversity can push ecosystems beyond what might be termed a safe functioning space.

From there: i) Conduct extensive field studies and long-term monitoring to assess the impacts of CC on various plant species, particularly those critical to ecosystem functions and services. ii) Prioritize the conservation of biodiversity hotspots, which are more vulnerable to CC due to their rich but often delicate ecosystems. iii) Encourage the adoption of agroforestry and other sustainable agricultural practices that enhance plant productivity while maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services. iv) Advocate for the integration of CC adaptation and mitigation strategies into national and regional environmental policies. v) Increase public awareness of the impacts of CC on plant productivity, biodiversity, and ecosystems through education and outreach programs.