Cone Counters: Assess new reproduction in conifer trees

Cone Counters is a project to assess new reproduction* by conifer trees in different areas and over time, anywhere in the world. Conifer trees have variable reproduction over time, known as 'mast seeding' - this means that some years trees will produce massive amounts of cones, and few to no cones in other years - and these patterns vary in different locations. This project will contribute to understanding these patterns and relationships between different species of trees. The seeds within cones are important for future forests and are food for numerous seed consumers (e.g., small mammals, birds, insects).

*new reproduction means new cones on trees - they will tend to look green or purple in most species (brown cones on trees are 1+ years old)

For more information on this project, go to: http://lamontagnelab.weebly.com/conecounters.html

Sharing observations on social media? Use #ConeCounters

In addition to species and locations, here are the key observation fields:
stemDiameter OR stemCircumference: one or the other is required
units for stemDiameter / stemCircumference: cm or inches
cropYear: year when seeds will fall
cropCount: the number of NEW CONES counted (usually using binoculars)
cropFraction: estimate of the total crop represented by cropCount, e.g., 0.5
canopyClass: 1 - open grown, 2 - full sun, 3 - partial shade, 4 - mostly shade, 5 - full shade

Are you interested in counting reproductive structures on deciduous trees? Head over to the MASTIF project! https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/mastif less ↑