Spring temperature and snow cover climatology drive the advanced springtime phenology (1991–2014) in the European Alps

Abstract

Shifts in phenology are important traces of climate change affecting mountainous ecosystems. We present an analysis of changes in spring phenology using a suite of Earth observation based parameters, i.e., start of season (SOS), snow cover extent and meteorological variables from 1991 up to 2012/2014 for the European Alps. Our results show that SOS tends to occur earlier throughout the Alps during this period and spring temperatures have increased in the Eastern Alps. Spring temperatures presented a predominant influence on SOS for both, grasslands and forests across elevations between 500–2,200 m asl, while this effect is particularly pronounced in the northeastern Alps. Snow cover duration and snow cover melting days showed secondary impact on SOS. Our research provides a comprehensive observation of spatiotemporal changes in alpine spring vegetation phenology and its driving factors. They improve our understanding of the sensitivity of the European Alps ecosystems to a changing climate.