A drop in the total number of rainy days each year is contributing to an earlier arrival of spring for plants in northern climates, a new study finds.
A drop in the total number of rainy days each year is contributing to an earlier arrival of spring for plants in northern climates, a new study finds.
Scientists have known that warmer temperatures due to climate change have led to the first leaves coming out at earlier dates in recent decades.
But this study shows that fewer rainy days plays the second largest role in this early leaf-out, said Desheng Liu, co-author of the study and professor of geography at The Ohio State University.
“Scientists have looked mainly at how temperature affects when leaves first appear and, if they considered precipitation at all, it was just the total amount,” Liu said.
Read more at Ohio State University
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