The Phenology Handbook - USA National Phenology Network

The USA-National Phenology Network
The USA-NPN is being designed as a nationwide network that oversees regularly repeated phenological
observations that are linked to local and national climatological and hydrological data, as well as to imagery
or data obtained through remote sensing. These data, in turn, will be available for analysis using a
variety of quantitative and geographic tools. The first objective of the USA- NPN is to establish a functional
phenological monitoring network of stations distributed throughout the United States. Organizations
such as biological field stations, agricultural extension stations, and National Parks, which already include
biological monitoring as part of their current mission or ongoing activities, are particularly valuable institutional
partners, as are schools and universities engaged in planting and monitoring local phenological
gardens. Only with widespread engagement of the public, however, will the NPN be able to realize the
kind of data-collecting power that will enable it to detect the species, communities, and biomes that are
most sensitive to environmental change.
The USA-National Phenology Network will consist of four tiers representing varying levels of sampling intensity.
The first tier (top of the pyramid) comprises the most intensively monitored sites, where multiple
environmental parameters are already being recorded. The second tier represents existing networks of
people and/or instruments, such as weather stations, national parks, national forests, and wildlife refuges.
The third, even broader, tier includes members of the public and formal and informal educational groups.
For example, Project Budburst, a national campaign to engage the public in phenological monitoring, was
successfully launched in 2007 and expanded in 2008. At the base of the observation pyramid are remotely
sensed data, which can provide wall-to-wall coverage of observations across the landscape. Finally, focused
phenology networks with local to regional objectives are also being developed with the support and
guidance of the National Coordinating Office of the USA-NPN, which was established in Tucson, Arizona in
summer 2007 with long-term support from the U.S. Geological Survey and the University of Arizona.
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