Alyssa Gruber

4/29/21

ENVL 2205

Phenology of my local flora and fauna

Introduction

I chose to study Mallard Ducks that nest by a river near my house and a pine tree that grows in my

backyard. Mallard ducks will begin to look for mates late in the year from November to December and start to

nest beginning in early March. They will stay together until the end of breeding season which occurs in late

May. During this time, the female will lay about a dozen eggs either every day or every other day. The males’

only role is to help produce new offspring and once that job is finished, he will then move on and leave to find

another female to continue the cycle. For pine trees, their needles will begin to drop in the late summer/early

fall and will start to grow back again during spring. During this study I wanted to focus on how the

environment will change the phenology of these species and how they respond phonologically to changes in

their environments.

Materials and Methods

For this study I observed a local river where mallards frequent in Clinton Township, NJ, which is a small

town in western New Jersey. I also observed a pine tree that grows in my backyard in Lebanon Township, NJ

which is just one town over from Clinton. This part of New Jersey is in Hunterdon County which consists of

large rural areas made up of farms while also being home to Cushetunk Mountain and Round Valley Reservoir.

Many types of plants and animals are found here including large trees like Black Birch, Beech, and Hickory.

Shrubbery is commonly found in the understory while the ground is covered in grasses. Some of the wildlife

found in the area are bald eagles, small reptiles, white tail deer, and a variety of woodland birds.
 I collected my data by going out and observing the two species every week and recording my

observations. I also took photographs at the two locations to help me analyze the state of the two species

when I observed them over the weeks. The data was also analyzed to note the differences or similarities I

observed over the next couple of weeks. This data was collected and observed over a six weeklong period.

Results

From the first day I started back on March 16 th and all the way up to my last day of observation on

April 21st, I have noticed a change in the number of mallards that I have seen as well as a change in their

behavior. As the weeks passed, I noticed the number of mallards at the river was starting to increase a little bit

every single week. On March 16th I observed a total of 21 mallards at the river but by April 21 st I observed 35

mallards. This is an increase of 14 mallards in these six weeklong time periods. This makes sense because this is

the time of year where the mated mallards will start to lay their eggs and after about a month of the female

lying on top of them, the eggs will start to hatch. Due to this, the ducks are becoming a little bit more territorial

over their food and nesting grounds every week. The table below shows this trend of the number of mallards

increasing as time passed from mid-March to late April.

Number of Mallards Observed

30
25
20
15
10
5
0
3/16/2021 3/23/2021 3/30/2021 4/5/2021 4/14/2021 4/21/2021

Date

Figure 1: The number of mallards observed from 3/16/21 to 4/21/21 in Clinton Township, NJ
Figure 2: Group of Mallards observed in Clinton Township, NJ on 3/16/21

During these same six weeks, I also observed some changes in the pine tree that grows in my

backyard. The pine tree in my backyard is a mature tree and I estimate it to be over 50 ft tall. Over the winter,

the tree was losing its needles but by March 16 th, it was already growing most of them back. By April 21 st, the

tree was once again covered with pine needles. The table below represents the amount of leaf growth during

this time. Over the six weeks, the grew from 3 inches up to 6.5 inches. This supports my initial thought that

over time the weather would get warmer and therefore the needles would grow to be even longer as time

passed on. I anticipate that this tree will be dropping its needles this year as it tends to do every year during

the summer. The falling pine needles may be one factor as to why the local soil is more acidic than other areas.

Pine Tree Needle Growth (in) Date

3/16/202
3 1
3/23/202
4.5 1
3/30/202
5 1
5.5 4/5/2021
4/14/202
6 1
4/21/202
6.5 1
Figure 3: Pine needle growth for pine tree in my backyard in Lebanon Township, NJ from 3/16/21 to 4/21/21
Figure 4: Pine tree growing in my backyard on 4/5/21 in Lebanon Township, NJ

Discussion

Knowing a species’ phenology is an important tool for conservation. For example, if rivers start to thaw

earlier than normal because of climate change, than waterfowl like mallards will have to migrate sooner and

start to breed and nest sooner than normal. Having to migrate earlier might mean that the birds are not fully

prepared for the long trip. It also means that while the rivers might be thawing out, the birds will still have to

nest in colder temperatures and the eggs might hatch when the weather is not yet warm enough for them to

do so. Another example in the case of the pine tree is if it starts to warm up sooner, the trees will drop their

needles sooner than normal. For conservation to properly work, an understanding as to the species’ phenology

is important as it can help predict behavioral patterns which can than lead to a more successful management

strategy. This relates back to forest ecology in the pinelands as a Forest Management Plan (FMP) is

implemented to protect all native species using phenology data. Some of the literature I found were about the

different cycles of the breeding process for mallards. They also discussed how climate and climate change can

affect the phenology of pine trees. At the end of the day, understanding phenology can help lead to a greater
understanding how certain environments work and can help create management plans to preserve their

existence.

Literature Cited

Dougherty, P. M., Whitehead, D., & Vose, J. M. (1994). Environmental influences on the phenology of

pine. Ecological Bulletins, 64-75.

Elmberg, J., Folkesson, K., Guillemain, M., & Gunnarsson, G. (2009). Putting density dependence in

perspective: nest density, nesting phenology, and biome, all matter to survival of simulated

mallard Anas platyrhynchos nests. Journal of Avian Biology, 40(3), 317-326.

Oja, H., & Pöysä, H. (2007, January). Spring phenology, latitude, and the timing of breeding in two

migratory ducks: implications of climate change impacts. Finnish Zoological and Botanical Publishing

Board. Annales Zoologici Fennici, 45(6), 475-485.

R. (n.d.). Mallard duck Breeding & nesting habits. Retrieved April 30, 2021, from

https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/mallard/breeding/