Assessment of Climate Variability on Vegetation Phenology Cycle in Wetland Region of Nigeria

Abstract

Climate variability and change has been a global problem that is affecting the environment. Therefore, this work assessed the impact of climate variability on vegetation phenology cycle in the wetland region of Niger Delta from 2010 to 2019 using remote sensing and geographical information system. The data used in this study was based on remotely sensed data. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data MOD11A1 and MOD13A1 of 2010-2019 downloaded for three (3) years interval from the NASA website. The ArcGIS 10.1 modeler was used to put the parameter of conversion from satellite data to climate data. The mean temperature and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was extracted using the study area administrative boundary shapefile. The result was computed in a graph. The result shows that from 2010 to 2019 there has been a serious climate variability that has impacted the vegetation phenology cycle. When NDVI was high in Cross River the temperature was low and when NDVI was low the temperature was high in Delta state. Rainfall and NDVI followed the same trend pattern as NDVI increases rainfall increases. The study shows a relationship between vegetation photosynthesis and rainfall; as rainfall increases, vegetation photosynthesis also increases. This study recommends constant monitoring of vegetation phenology to observe the impact of climate variability on the vegetation.