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Phenology and the Time People

Idea a little late: Note received Feb 27, 2008

Project BudBurst Invites Participation in Observing Plants

Project BudBurst is inviting citizen scientists to join in collecting important climate change data on the timing of leafing and flowering for native trees and flowers. The project began its second year of collecting phenological observations on February 15. Citizen science observations and records from the first year of observation were entered into the BudBurst data base. As a result of the pilot field campaign, useful data was collected in a consistent way across the country. Scientists can use the data to learn about the responses of individual plant species to climatic variation locally, regionally, and nationally, and to detect longer-term impacts of climate change by comparing with historical data.

A response to a student's email...

Received: Date: Fri, 23 Feb 2001 15:40:02 -0500
From: Sylvia Schmidt
Subject: Signs of Spring?
Sender: VT-FIW
X-Sender: sschmidt@mail.vt.edu

Have you seen any more signs of spring? We have started a list for birds, herps, invertebrates, and plants outside Rm 134. Please add any new species you see in the New River Valley to our lists. It should be fun once the snow melts. Please tell other friends you may have in the biology department or elsewhere to feel free to participate.

Please let me know whether you have any suggestions. I have already heard some complaints from lovers of furry four-legged creatures. My original idea was to keep track of birds, and that's the list that I will be responsible for (at this point in time). Any mammalogist out there want to keep track of mammals terminating their hibernation?

Sylvia Schmidt, Graduate Research Assistant, Dept. of Fisheries & Wildlife, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24060-0321, sschmidt@vt.edu, 540-231-1692,

Reply from Giles

I saw your note about spring signs. I taught there for many years and developed some ideas about a phenology club. The internet has opened new possibilities. You seem interested. My preliminary notes are within my site under The Time People in Nature Folks at http://fwie.fw.vt.edu/rhgiles/LastingForests/LFNatFolks.htm

I have dreams of an organization (similar to those in Europe) of nature observers who are interested in the timing of biological events. With the internet that could report and follow the progression of seasons up and down the Atlantic coast as refelected in 5 - 10 "standard" observations, work on altitude differences (Scott Klopfer has done some of this work), and enjoy the companship of people with similar interests, do local research, support regional studies, have conferences, coordinate among countries, promote or sponsor tours that "follow the flowers" or" follow the geese", and take pleasure in unusual findings. I'm convinced that alaries can be found herein for professional wildlifers, especially in the context of the Lasting Forests concept (www.LastingForests.com). I'll appreciate your thoughts and those of your colleagues. Possibilities, potentials, limitations? Call if you care to. I'll welcome email or even a lunch-time discussion.

from British Ecol Soc. Bul, XIX:4 , suggesting further similar analyses to achieve precise phenological analyses: Thermal times to vegetative budburst were measured for 15 perenials after different durations of chilling. Relationship of the form

T = a + b exp(kc) were fitted and past meterological records used to estimate budburst e.g., following a predicted 0-3 degrees C uniform climatic warming. Climatic warming induced earlier burst in some species.

See Academic Press - Plany cold hardiness and freezing stress edited by Li and Sakai (1978)

See Pergamon Press for related titles.

This Web site is maintained by R. H. Giles, Jr.
Last revision February 23, 2001.