Phoebes are back!

On March 27, 2012, there were several reports of the "first of the season" Phoebes in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania.

In my records, in 2011, these first showed up in Kunkletown (north of the Kittatinny Ridge) on 3/23 and last year on 3/15.  I haven't seen them here yet, but one was at the Lehigh Gap Nature Center yesterday (3/27).  In 2012 (a wierd year, for sure), the first reports in the Lehigh Valley were on 3/11 and 3/13.  I have the data for the Lehigh Valley in 2011, but not at my fingertips.  They sometimes are quiet for the first week or so when they first arrive, so are less noticeable.

Is it finally going to be spring?

From my other blog, but a bit on changing seasons
http://anewprosperity.blogspot.com/2013/03/not-your-typical-drive-home-from-work.html

January 12th and cherry blossoms?

Today, I had the first reports of cherry blossoms in Washington D.C.  Seriously.

Washington D.C. Cherry Blossoms in January 2013
(photo posted by fellow Audubon Together Green Fellow, Sara Espinoza, on Facebook)

The oldest known phenology records are of the timing of cherry tree blooms from China and Japan, going back over one thousand years.  A 2011 scientific paper by Sakurai, et al., published in the journal Biological Conservation reported that  "In Japan, biologists have found climate change is affecting species and ecosystems, including the earlier flowering time of cherry trees which are an important cultural symbol in Japan...According to research in Kyoto, the average flowering date during 1971– 2000 was 7 days earlier than an average of the previous 1200 years."

According to the National Park Service, the Peak Bloom Date in Washington is defined as "the day on which 70 percent of the blossoms of the Yoshino cherry trees that surround the Tidal Basin are open." As in Japan, this date has been arriving earlier by a week to ten days.

This tidbit of information may not have any significant impact on our lives, except when we should plan a weekend trip to the nation's capital in the spring.  But one has to wonder if this is a little sign from nature that we should be paying attention to what else might be changing as a consequence of climate change?

The times they are a changin'

From the phenology project in 2012, we had a number of "early "reports, especially with plants emerging/flowering at odd times. West Nile cases were reported in the state earlier. The PA Breeding Bird Census shows northwardly expanding ranges for several species. Any connection to the unusual weather patterns?

NOAA scientists confirm that 2012 was the warmest and second most extreme year on record for the contiguous U.S.:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130108131149.htm

Smart phones and citizen science

The apps are cool and adding to the number of people participating in citizen science projects like phenology!

http://www.marketplace.org/topics/tech/apps-transform-cellphone-users-citizen-scientists

Heading to Doha

For the fourth year in a row, I am headed to the United Nations conference on climate change with a small delegation from Moravian College. We will be blogging, and to kick off COP18, I have posted the first entry for 2012:

http://moraviancollegeatunfccc.blogspot.com/2012/11/pondering-ad-dawhah.html

 

In the 2007 report (the 4th assessment report) from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), authors noted the value of phenology as an indicator of ecological responses to a changing climate.  At the meetings in Doha, IPCC members are slated to provide a number of updates that will be published in the 5th assessment report.  I look forward to hearing what they have to say.

The Autumnal Equinox

I have been away from this blog for too long.

I noticed today the early tinges of color in the trees along the mountain as I worked on a sustainability project for campus. I had forgotten that today was the autumnal equinox, the start to my favorite season. And then I stumbled on this passage and thought it perfect for the day.

A hidden fire burns perpetually upon the hearth of the world.... In autumn this great conflagration becomes especially manifest. Then the flame that is slowly and mysteriously consuming every green thing bursts into vivid radiance. Every blade of grass and every leaf in the woodlands is cast into the great oven of Nature; and the bright colours of their fading are literally the flames of their consuming. The golden harvest-fields are glowing in the heart of the furnace.... By this autumn fire God every year purges the floor of nature. All effete substances that have served their purpose in the old form are burnt up. Everywhere God makes sweet and clean the earth with fire. ~Hugh Macmillan

My friend, Drew Lanham, posted this on Facebook today: “Happy Fall Y'all! 'Tis the season for chasing migrating warblers and wary whitetails. As summer relents to autumnal senescence, embrace the pace of things slowing down, moving on and storing up. It is my favorite time of year!”

What do you like about the autumn season?  What changes are you seeing (and when and where) that signal this fall season?  There are many phenological events to be recorded!