Phenology

Many biological events occur seasonally – responding to annual changes in environmental factors such as temperature, light intensity and day length. We can see these phenological changes for ourselves when we notice plants flowering in the spring or fruiting in the summer, or admire the changing colours of tree leaves as “autumn senescence” occurs and leaf cells deteriorate in response to cooler temperatures.

Animals respond to these seasonal changes too, and the timing of emergence of butterflies, bird nesting, migration and hibernation are linked to those same changes in biophysical factors that affect the botanical world. However, with changes in the climate, phenological changes can happen at different rates, sometimes causing a mismatch in how organisms interact in an ecosystem.