MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • September 28, 2025
The Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram spoke to two dozen experts this summer about the ways increasing heat is affecting Maine’s environment, ranging from the short-term impacts of heat waves on bats and birds to the long-term effects of warming lakes, forests and oceans. A state and federal research team that has spent two years documenting the Narraguagus River’s temperature and flow to explore how close, how big and how cold these spots must be for salmon to survive. The state’s iconic spruce and fir populations are declining and heat-tolerant hickories and oaks are taking their place. The rising heat is taking a direct toll on moose, endangered bats, rare turtles and various species of birds that fall from their nests or are hit by cars when roused from dormancy too early. Maine scientists believe that people can help the environment adapt to the changing climate.