Arturo Espinoza
10/5/15
Biology
Period 7
Phenology
What is phenology? Phenology is the study of seasonal change and timing. Also phenology refers to main seasonal changes in plants and animals from year to year, such as flowering, emergence of insects and migration of many birds especially their timing and relationship with weather and climate. This growing part of science examines cyclical events in animal behavior and plant growth. A large amount of organisms, including humans, depend on the predictable nature of seasonal turns. Farmers, naturalists, gardeners, fishermen and others have recorded seasonal observations for centuries in notebooks. By combining this high historical record with recent observations, scientist that shifts in long-term phenology trends closely match records of Earth’s warming temperature. Also when phenology and climate data are studied together, people can explore how climate factors influence the timing of those seasonal biological events. Phenological observations have been used for centuries to increase crop production, prepare for seasonal allergies, and anticipate optimal wildflower viewing conditions. Observations of phenological events have provided implication of the progress of the natural calendar since pre-agricultural times.
What is global climate change? What factors have caused this? The earth’s climate has warmed and cooled for millions of years. The tough climate change is nothing new, but the study of how human activity affects the earth’s climate is. There has been no doubt that the climate is growing warmer currently; indications of that change are all around us. The only way to explain the pattern is by including the effect of greenhouse gases emitted by humans. Scientist have found out that the cause of warming, and humans are constantly using them in a variety of ways. Most come from the combustion of fossil fuels in cars, factories and electricity production. They also stated that the gas most responsible for warming is carbon dioxide (CO2). Another addition to the cause of warming would include methane released from landfills and agriculture, especially digestive systems of grazing animals. Also nitrous oxide from fertilizers, gases used for refrigeration and industrial processes, and the loss of forests that would otherwise store CO2 are causes of global warming. Some consequences of global warming is that there is a change rainfall and snow patterns, increase droughts and severe storms, reduce lake ice cover, melt glaciers, increase sea levels, and change plant and animal behavior.
What is the link between climate change and phenology patterns? Climate change has led to many shifts in phenology in many species spread widely across taxonomic groups. Climate change may disrupt interspecies phenological synchrony, with conflicting consequences to the functioning of an ecosystem. The timing of phenological events has been shifting as a result of the climate change. In up to date informati...
