Signs of the Seasons: A New England Phenology Program Field Guide

Signs of the Seasons (SOS) is an environmental monitoring and education program for Maine citizens of all ages. Participants contribute to scientists\u27 understanding of the local effects of climate change by observing and recording phenology, the seasonal changes of common plants and animals, in their own backyards and communities. The University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Maine Sea Grant developed the program in 2010, and co-coordinate the program\u27s volunteer services, research collaborations, and public outreach. In 2012, University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension and New Hampshire Sea Grant joined the effort, and have extended the program to volunteers and research partners in New Hampshire. We are a Partner Program of the USA National Phenology Network, and we work closely with many other research and outreach partners, including the National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Maine Audubon, Schoodic Education and Research Center, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, and faculty at the University of Maine, Maine Maritime Academy, and the University of New Hampshire

Signs of the Seasons Program Species in Focus: Monarchs and Milkweed, an Ecological Relationship Threatened by Climate Change

Over the past two decades, researchers have observed declines in populations of both monarch butterflies (over 70% in some areas) and milkweed. Climate-related factors contributing to these declines include increasing frequency of intense winter storms and near freezing temperatures in monarch overwintering areas in Mexico, and severe droughts in the southwestern and southeastern United States, which affect both species. If these trends continue, they could create a mismatch in time or space between monarch breeding cycles along their northward migration (April to August) and the growth and survival of milkweed plants eaten by monarch caterpillars

National perspectives on climate change adaptation: A panel discussion of climate change adaptation efforts in diverse coastal regions of the United States

Climate change has rapidly emerged as a significant threat to coastal areas around the world. While uncertainty regarding distribution, intensity, and timescale inhibits our ability to accurately forecast potential impacts, it is widely accepted that changes in global climate will result in a variety of significant environmental, social, and economic impacts. Coastal areas are particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and the implications of sea-level rise, and coastal communities must develop the capacity to adapt to climate change in order to protect people, property, and the environment along our nation’s coasts. The U.S. coastal zone is highly complex and variable, consisting of several regions that are characterized by unique geographic, economic, social and environmental factors. The degree of risk and vulnerability associated with climate change can vary greatly depending on the exposure and sensitivity of coastal resources within a given area. The ability of coastal communities to effectively adapt to climate change will depend greatly on their ability to develop and implement feasible strategies that address unique local and regional factors. A wide variety of resources are available to assist coastal states in developing their approach to climate change adaptation. However, given the complex and variable nature of the U.S. coastline, it is unlikely that a single set of guidelines can adequately address the full range of adaptation needs at the local and regional levels. This panel seeks to address some of the unique local and regional issues facing coastal communities throughout the U.S. including anticipated physical, social, economic and environmental impacts, existing resources and guidelines for climate change adaptation, current approaches to climate change adaptation planning, and challenges and opportunities for developing adaptation strategies. (PDF contains 4 pages

PromotingClimate Change Awareness and Adaptive Planning in Atlantic Fisheries Communities using Dialogue-based Participatory Vulnerability Analysis, Mapping, and Collaborative Systems Dynamic Modeling

The goals for the proposed project are twofold: • First, the project will improve understandings of how a changing climate will affect fishing communities’ abilities to maintain marine fisheries and the local economies historically dependent upon them. • Second, the project will investigate the role of a structured dialogue and participatory modeling process to support decision makers in fishing communities addressing consequences, vulnerabilities, and adaptive strategies in a context of climate stressors

Building a Resilient Coast. Climate Variability and Coastal Community Resilience: Developing and Testing a National Model of State-based Outreach

The Maine Sea Grant College Program, in partnership with the Oregon Sea Grant College Program, conducted a two-year NOAA-funded project: 1) to explore how climate variability and coastal hazards may be affecting our coastal regions and how these relate to coastal development in the two states; 2) to encourage and facilitate collaboration among and between decision makers and coastal property owners to determine and implement appropriate responses to climate variability on short and longer timescales; 3) to discover the barriers that targeted audiences in the states have to taking action to either prepare for or mitigate the effects of climate variability; and 4) to develop educational and informational materials and strategies concerning these issues. The ultimate goal of the project is to move behavior toward decisive action that results in coastal communities that are more resilient to climate variability at all scales. In Maine, two groups were targeted with these strategies and materials: coastal property owners (CPOs); and municipal elected and appointed officials, including local and regional planning agency personnel. For the purposes of this report, “coastal hazards” include shoreline erosion, sea-level rise, higher tides, increased storm severity, and coastal flooding. This technical report covers only the Maine component of the project

Nonstationarity in seasonality of extreme precipitation: A nonparametric circular statistical approach and its application.

Changes in seasonality of extreme storms have important implications for public safety, storm water infrastructure, and, in general, adaptation strategies in a changing climate. While past research on this topic offers some approaches to characterize seasonality, the methods are somewhat limited in their ability to discern the diversity of distributional types for extreme precipitation dates. Herein, we present a comprehensive approach for assessment of temporal changes in the calendar dates for extreme precipitation within a circular statistics framework which entails: (a) three measures to summarize circular random variables (traditional approach), (b) four nonparametric statistical tests, and (c) a new nonparametric circular density method to provide a robust assessment of the nature of probability distribution and changes. Two 30 year blocks (1951–1980 and 1981–2010) of annual maximum daily precipitation from 10 stations across the state of Maine were used for our analysis. Assessment of seasonality based on nonparametric approach indicated nonstationarity; some stations exhibited shifts in significant mode toward Spring season for the recent time period while some other stations exhibited multimodal seasonal pattern for both the time periods. Nonparametric circular density method, used in this study, allows for an adaptive estimation of seasonal density. Despite the limitation of being sensitive to the smoothing parameter, this method can accurately characterize one or more modes of seasonal peaks, as well as pave the way toward assessment of changes in seasonality over time

Signs of the Seasons: A New England Phenology Program

As global climate records continue to break, average New England air temperature increases are among the highest in the continental United States, and sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Maine have increased faster than 99 percent of the rest of the world’s oceans. Little is known about how marine and upland biota respond to these environmental changes. Citizen science is being used to document and compare current phenology (the timing of life cycle events) for individual species with histori­cally documented relationships between temperature changes and the onset of partic­ular phenophases, such as leafout or gamete release. Signs of the Seasons (SOS) is a citizen science–driven phenology-monitoring program in northern New England that observes 19 upland and coastal indicator species and was developed by University of Maine Cooperative Extension, Maine Sea Grant, and partnering research scientists. This article provides an overview of SOS structure, research partnerships, lessons learned, challenges, and next steps

Preparing for a Changing Climate: The State of Adaptation Planning in Maine’s Coastal Communities

Climate change is having a range of impacts on Maine’s coastal communities, impacts that will be further exacerbated by increased coastal flooding, storm events, and a warming Gulf of Maine. To better understand the status of adaptation planning by Maine coastal communities, we conducted a survey and in-depth interviews with decision makers from coastal communities. We found that communities are addressing the effects of climate change and have moved towards specific implementation strategies. Adaptation planning to date includes incorporation of climate change impacts in comprehensive planning and addressing impacts on roads, culverts, and waterfront infrastructure. Respondents indicated the need for more specific data on the direct impacts of climate change in their communities over the next two years. They identified a preference for spatial data and interactive websites, followed by support from technical experts. Although the majority of respondents had an understanding of the physical vulnerabilities their communities face, they identified a need for increased resources to assess social vulnerability impacts. Additionally, communities face challenges in identifying appropriate funding sources that match identified needs. Adaptation planning processes are often stymied by the lack of dedicated funding that enables coastal communities to be proactive in addressing the physical and social impacts of climate change