MARE researcher co-authors publication in Nature: Database on fruiting phenology

MARE researcher Jaime Ramos co-authored the article "O armário: Fruiting phenology data for 4,426 plant taxa in Portugal (1926-2013)". The article is the result of work carried out by a team of researchers from the University of Coimbra.

Conditions such as temperature, light and humidity, the main events in plant life (phenology), are currently constantly changing due to climate change. As a result, phenomena such as flowering are occurring out of time and can upset the balance of ecosystems.

Despite this, there are gaps in the knowledge of key processes such as fruit ripening, mainly due to the lack of comprehensive long-term data.

In this context, a team of researchers from the University of Coimbra, including MARE researcher Jaime Ramos, developed the Index Seminum (seed exchange catalogue) database for the University of Coimbra Botanical Garden. This database consists of 127,747 records, dating from 1926 to 2013. The seeds belong to 4,462 taxa, collected from spontaneous and cultivated individuals in Portugal, including native and introduced species. The day and place of collection is also recorded, as well as the species or infraspecific taxa

To make this possible, the taxonomy was selected manually and then harmonised according to the GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information System) backbone taxonomy.

To access the article click HERE