Media advances UMaine study about wild blueberry field warming

News Center Maine, Scienmag, Phys.org, the Bangor Daily News, The Piscataquis Observer, Morning Ag Clips, the Environmental News Network and other national outlets reported on University of Maine research showing that the location, season and the time of day influence how fast temperatures are rising at Maine wild blueberry fields due to climate change. Differences in warming based on location and time mean that some fields will benefit from rising temperatures some years and suffer during others. “I believe the outcomes from the analyses of this study have opened more room for further research to verify the responses of Maine’s beloved wild blueberries to the dramatic seasonal and spatial climatic changes that they are and will keep experiencing. It would be vital and more beneficial for the growers if we research scientists can plan and recommend management strategies based on both the climate analyses that we have done as well as based on the wild blueberry plants’ specific responses,” said Rafa Tasnim, a Ph.D. candidate in ecology and environmental sciences and lead author of the study.