Biodiversidad

Just like a sunrise, the emergence of leaves in spring is one of nature’s poetic, awe-inspiring moments. It reminds us of the phases of nature, inexorable and punctual. However, that punctuality is being influenced by climate change, which is causing plants to come into leaf earlier and earlier each year. That, in turn, has consequences for trees, as well as global effects on the carbon cycle and climate change itself. 

In a situation of global warming, phenology becomes essential scientific knowledge to understand the environment’s behaviour in the medium and long term. Beyond changes as ephemeral and visible as the evolution of the colour of tree leaves, phenology studies the relationship between the cycles of living beings and the climate, linked to the annual course of meteorology in a specific place.

All living organisms need water, and plants are no exception. While many animals can move around to find it, most plants are rooted to the spot and have therefore had to develop astonishing ways of obtaining and storing it.

The Pyrenees region is experiencing a warming rate higher than the global average, making it a critical observatory for the impacts of climate change. Researchers from Spain, Andorra and France have begun efforts to chart the biodiversity of microorganisms living under the surface of 300 different lakes across the Pyrenees. The initiative will shed light on how invisible communities maintain the health of these unique and fragile ecosystems, helping the region prepare and adapt for the long-term impacts of climate change.