Paired Phenological Monitoring and Climate Data in the White Mountains of New Hampshire

Goland, Rachel

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Paired Phenological Monitoring and Climate Data in the White Mountains of New Hampshire

Goland, Rachel

Abstract

This project piloted the establishment of phenology monitoring alongside weather stations on the Mount Washington Auto Road Vertical Profile (ARVP) to understand best practices and next steps for the creation of a long-term monitoring regime that pairs phenology data with measured climate data. Organized into three chapters, this report presents a detailed examination of data from the 2024 field season and additional AMC datasets as well as a reflection of the overall field season. Chapter 1 compares the air temperature data from a new type of in-situ data logger, the TMS units, and the weather stations, using statistical analyses and correlation measures to assess their interchangeability at the site level. While data from the two sources are often correlated, results from this chapter indicate more field testing is needed to better inform the use of TMS units. Chapter 2 explores the ARVP 2024 phenological data alongside AMC's larger phenology data set. This chapter focuses on the onset of open flowering and builds models showcasing how species vary in their phenology across elevation and temperature. It also compares gridded climate model temperatures (Daymet and PRISM) with in-situ measurements from weather stations or AMC's HOBO units, demonstrating differences in measured and modeled climate data that warrants further investigation. Finally, Chapter 3 offers a qualitative reflection on the 2024 season, summarizing key takeaways and providing recommendations for future work. These insights aim to guide the next steps for the AMC and to serve as a starting point for other conservation/research groups (USFS, state/federal land management, NGOs) that wish to set up similar monitoring along environmental gradients in the northeast and beyond.