How to Use phenology in a Sentence

phenology

noun
Definition of phenologynext
  • The study of the way species time their behavior with Earth’s cycles is called phenology.
    — Jude Coleman, Scientific American, 22 Mar. 2023
  • Help track the phenology of bumble bees by finding and photographing queen bees.
    — Eva Lewandowski, Discover Magazine, 13 Apr. 2017
  • City lights that blaze all night are profoundly disrupting urban plants’ phenology – shifting when their buds open in the spring and when their leaves change colors and drop in the fall.
    — Yuyu Zhou, The Conversation, 12 July 2022
  • The phenology calendar sells for $15 and is available from the foundation at aldoleopold.org.
    — Paul A. Smith, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 14 Dec. 2019
  • Spera studies climate change via phenology, which is the term for events like fall colors that happen with some kind of regular timing.
    — Caroline Delbert, Popular Mechanics, 4 Nov. 2022
  • Botanists have long studied what governs the timing of tree’s cyclic processes, also called their phenology.
    — Ula Chrobak, Popular Science, 30 Nov. 2020
  • All are led by naturalists and each has a theme, such as the phenology of when things happen in the natural world, like when lakes freeze, animals come out of hibernation and buds erupt.
    — Brian E. Clark, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 27 Dec. 2019
  • The start of spring is usually described in terms of phenology - key seasonal changes seen in plants and animals from year to year, also known as nature's calendar.
    — Justin Madden, cleveland.com, 28 Feb. 2018
  • Keep planting trees' Lorentz studies the Ohio River ecosystem and said people can already expect to see fewer fish this season from warmer winters two to three years back as part of that balance of phenology.
    — Erin Glynn, Cincinnati.com, 30 Mar. 2020
  • From leaves changing color to flower buds opening on a daffodil, phenology simply means the study of observable phases in plant and animal life, called phenophases, and anyone can learn to do it.
    — Marianne Willburn, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 May 2020
  • There are also shifts in phenology, or the seasonal timing of biological events, such as when deer are born or when birds return from migration.
    — Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 12 Feb. 2022
  • Thoreau was fascinated by phenology, the study of the way the year turns, when things bloom and birds migrate and animals hibernate or wake, and his notes on these phenomena are now used by scientists to record the changing climate.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 8 July 2021
  • Embrace cheerful blooms all around you and share your phenology observations (seasonal changes in plants and animals, year to year) with these citizen science projects.
    — Lily Bui, Discover Magazine, 8 May 2014
  • The program observes plants and animals and generates long-term phenology data.
    — Kurt Snibbe, Orange County Register, 12 May 2017
  • Keep an eye out for a growing number of opportunities to engage in phenology and climate change research through citizen science.
    — Guest, Discover Magazine, 9 Apr. 2016
  • And although our survival no longer relies entirely on these cues, watching the seasons — a practice called phenology — inspires a deeper appreciation for the workings of nature and our impacts on it.
    — Star Tribune, 11 Mar. 2021
  • Urban plants’ phenology may also be influenced by other factors, such as carbon dioxide and soil moisture.
    — Yuyu Zhou, The Conversation, 12 July 2022
  • Morphology refers to physiological changes, like the aforementioned shrinking effect; phenology has to do with the timing of life events such as breeding and migration.
    — Matt Simon, WIRED, 23 July 2019
  • Keep a phenology journal: Track (and eventually connect) weather, insect, and bird populations, and flowering and fruiting dates in the garden.
    — Sunset Magazine, 3 Aug. 2020
  • The work is an experiment in resiliency, which ecologists hope will help guide restoration management in Illinois as climate change continues to affect plant phenology.
    — Yadira Sanchez Olson, chicagotribune.com, 14 July 2021
  • Additionally, the faster increase of temperature at night compared to the daytime could lead to different day-night temperature patterns, which might affect plant phenology in complex ways.
    — Yuyu Zhou, The Conversation, 12 July 2022
  • Because of its unique flowering phenology, hemp can potentially provide nutrition to bees during a period of floral scarcity.
    — Kristen Rogers and David G. Allan, CNN, 28 Jan. 2020
  • The observation that favors the hypothesis that climate affects phenology, or the timing of biological events, by altering the age profile of the population, a study published November in the Royal Society Journals found.
    — Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 12 Feb. 2022

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'phenology.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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