The British public have been asked to track flowering fruit trees to help determine whether climate change is changing blooming patterns, in one of the largest studies of its kind.
The University of Reading and Oracle for Research have developed a fruit recording website where citizen scientists can easily post their findings. People will initially be asked to record the flowering cherry and plum trees near them, with apple trees soon to follow.
Scientists fear that climate change may be causing trees to flower earlier than when insect pollinators are most active. Pollinators such as bees, hoverflies, wasps and moths have evolved symbiotically with the plants they pollinate. Now that plants are thought to be flowering earlier because of warmer weather, the yearly emergence of these insects may be too late.
If this is the case, it could mean fruit trees such as apple, pear, cherry and plum are adversely affected, as they rely on insect pollination to produce their fruit. It could also harm insect populations if they arrive after plants have already bloomed.
Chris Wyver, the PhD researcher at the University of Reading who is leading the Fruitwatch project, said: “We need members of the public to go out into gardens, allotments, orchards or parks and tell us what they see. We want as many eyes on as many trees as possible to tell us if climate change really is having an impact on fruit tree pollination. If it is, then action will be required to prevent a potentially significant impact on fruit production.
“Pollinators and fruit trees falling out of sync could mean supply issues, and more expensive and lower-quality fruit. Pollinators do an incredible job for the planet, and if insects are unable to pollinate fruit trees then something else will have to – potentially humans.”
People are asked to submit details of fruit trees they see and when they are in bloom. This information will be uploaded into an interactive map, and will show how climate change is affecting flowering times compared with pollinator activity. It will also give a clear picture of how blooming times differ between regions.
Information required will include the type of tree, its location, and the stage of flowering, as well as photos, which will also be shared on the map.
Scientists hope to use the information to target conservation action to the most affected areas and help with insect pollination in orchards. Pollinators are estimated to contribute more than £36m a year to the UK’s apple production alone.
Oracle’s senior research advocate Rich Pitts said: “This is a practical project that anyone in the UK can take part in. The project has been warmly received and we are expecting to receive lots of records. If we get 50,000 records the team will be very happy and we’ll owe a huge debt of gratitude to the UK’s budding citizen scientists.”