Northwoods forests will be affected by a changing climate and other stressors during this century, but individual tree species will respond uniquely to climate change, depending on their particular silvics and ecological tolerances. These handouts summarize general climate change projections for tree species across several landscapes in the region based on future projection models from the USDA Forest Service’s Climate Change Tree Atlas. It’s best to think of these projections as indicators of possibility and potential change, and that the general trends form these models can be combined with local knowledge and management experience to judge risk on a particular site.

The following handouts provide summarized lists of projected tree species responses to climate change. These handouts were updated in 2024 to standardize and refine the capability tables on the first page, clarify the role of the USDA Forest Service as core authors and distributors of the model results, and adhere to new accessibility standards.

• Eastern Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan
• Northern Minnesota
• Northern Wisconsin and Western Upper Peninsula of Michigan
• Southern Michigan
• Southern Wisconsin
• Separate handouts are available for individual Ecological Sections in:
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • Wisconsin

Regional vulnerability assessments and field guides contain additional information on observed climate trends and a range of projected future climates for the region. These document also describe many potential climate change impacts to forests and summarize key vulnerabilities for major forest ecosystems. The Climate Change Tree Atlas website contains more detailed information on projected changes for 125 eastern tree species, as well as additional regional summary tables for states, watersheds, and urban centers.