What comes to mind when you hear the word "summer"? It's very likely that you think of mangoes after other words like heat, ice cream, and holidays.
But when exactly do you eat your mangoes?
And how did scientists discover the different fruiting times of mangoes? From people across India, from people like you and us!
For scientists studying the fruiting and flowering of trees, it is difficult to travel across India and collect information on different varieties of trees. This is where they need help from you, me, and everyone else. We can help by providing scientists with information about the trees around us. The data we provide allows researchers to understand patterns in nature. Information collected over multiple years can also help us understand if the fruiting and flowering of trees are changing with every passing year.
One wonderful way of providing information on trees is through SeasonWatch. Just download the app, choose a tree you would like to provide information on, and contribute.
For the mango study, people across India uploaded their observations on mango trees to the SeasonWatch app. This helped scientists gather information and identify patterns quickly and efficiently.
What's more? This data is freely available for all, so you can request the data and explore it yourself!
We would like to thank Dr. Geetha Ramaswami from SeasonWatch for having a wonderful conversation with us at the Indian Wildlife Ecologists Conference 2024.
SeasonWatch website link: https://www.seasonwatch.in/
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