Climate Change and Plant Phenological Variability

Abstract

Plant phenology is the study of timing of recurrent life-cycle eventsin plants which is triggered by fluctuations in environmental conditions. Phenological studies are vital for understanding plant functioning including their biophysical andbiogeochemical feedbacks to the climate system. Phenological changes in plants or animals may reflect the response of biological systems to climate changescenarios and thus such studies are important for understanding the impacts of climate change on plants and animals. In the era of global climate change, plant phenology might have changed substantially owing to the elevated temperature associated with global warming and therefore, it requires comprehensive understanding. The growth of plants is often associated with the longevity of leaves therefore phenological stages have often been considered in process-based growth models to capture the influence of climate-related parameters on the growth of plants. Any changes in the temporal pattern of plant growth may be largely influenced by global climate change in order to alter overall productivity and associated attributes of an ecosystem including the distribution pattern of species. In this chapter, we present a comprehensive understanding of climate change and phenological variability, selective information of various research initiatives for understanding plant phenology, a compilation of various research work implemented across different countries and the recent progresses in phenological studies using different tools and approaches.