Rising Temperatures, Falling Leaves

The document explains that fall foliage is driven by temperature, sun exposure, and rainfall, all of which are being altered by climate change. While warming temperatures generally delay leaf fall, drought and heat stress can cause earlier shedding or duller colors. These shifts have economic implications for tourism and ecological implications for forest carbon sequestration.

• Climate change is altering the environmental triggers for fall foliage, which may disrupt the economic value of tourism and the ecological function of forest carbon budgets.
• Rising temperatures are generally associated with delayed leaf fall in the U.S., with average fall temperatures increasing by 2.7 °F since 1970. Specifically, higher October temperatures and nighttime warming contribute to this delay, particularly in lower latitudes (25° to 40°N).
• Certain climate stressors can lead to earlier leaf fall or reduced color quality. Drought and heat stress can cause leaves to shrivel or drop early, while higher latitudes (50° to 70°N) are more sensitive to sun exposure triggers for earlier leaf fall.
• The vibrancy of fall colors depends on a specific balance of light and temperature; for example, vivid displays are favored by a 9-12°F difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures, while early frost can limit the production of red pigments.
• Earlier leaf fall can shorten growing seasons, potentially reducing the capacity of forests to store carbon and mitigate climate change by absorbing CO2.

APA

Gallinat, A., Xie, Y., Rollinson, C., Primack, R., Rosemartin, A., & Neufeld, H. (2022). Rising Temperatures, Falling Leaves. Climate Central. https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-matters/rising-temperatures-falling-leaves

Chicago

Gallinat, Amanda, Yingying Xie, Christine Rollinson, Richard Primack, Alyssa Rosemartin, and Howard Neufeld. Rising Temperatures, Falling Leaves. Climate Central, 2022. https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-matters/rising-temperatures-falling-leaves.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Gallinat |first1=Amanda |last2=Xie |first2=Yingying |last3=Rollinson |first3=Christine |last4=Primack |first4=Richard |last5=Rosemartin |first5=Alyssa |last6=Neufeld |first6=Howard |title=Rising Temperatures, Falling Leaves |publisher=Climate Central |date=5 October 2022 |url=https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-matters/rising-temperatures-falling-leaves |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{gallinat2022rising, author = {Gallinat, Amanda and Xie, Yingying and Rollinson, Christine and Primack, Richard and Rosemartin, Alyssa and Neufeld, Howard}, title = {{Rising Temperatures, Falling Leaves}}, institution = {Climate Central}, year = {2022}, month = oct, url = {https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-matters/rising-temperatures-falling-leaves}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }