Climate change increases flowering duration, driving phenological reassembly and elevated co‐flowering richness

• DOI: 10.1111/nph.19994
• Publication Date: 2024-07-25T06:59:57Z
• Authors: Matthew W. Austin; Adam B. Smith; Kenneth M. Olsen; Peter C. Hoch; Kyra N. Krakos; Stefani P. Schmocker; Nicole E. Miller‐...
• Keywords: Herbarium; Growing season

Changes to flowering phenology are a key response of plants climate change. However, we know little about how these changes alter temporal patterns reproductive overlap (i.e. phenological reassembly). We combined long-term field (1937-2012) and herbarium records (1850-2017) 68 species in plant community central North America used novel application Bayesian quantile regression estimate season length, altered richness composition co-flowering assemblages, whether shifts exhibit seasonal trends. Across the past century, increased species' durations by 11.5 d on average, which resulted 94% experiencing greater at level. Increases were particularly pronounced autumn, driven tendency late shift ending later increase duration. Our results demonstrate that species-level can result considerable reassembly highlight duration as prominent, yet underappreciated, effect The emergence an autumn mode emphasizes effects may be season-dependent.