<P> In the tropical parts of Australia in the northern parts of Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory, wet and dry seasons are observed in addition to or in place of temperate season names . </P> <P> Indigenous people in polar, temperate and tropical climates of northern Eurasia, the Americas, Africa, Oceania, and Australia have traditionally defined the seasons ecologically by observing the activity of the plants, animals and weather around them . Each separate tribal group traditionally observes different seasons determined according to local criteria that can vary from the hibernation of polar bears on the arctic tundras to the growing seasons of plants in the tropical rainforests . In Australia, some tribes have up to eight seasons in a year, as do the Sami people in Scandinavia . Many indigenous people who no longer live directly off the land in traditional often nomadic styles, now observe modern methods of seasonal reckoning according to what is customary in their particular country or region . </P> <P> As noted, a variety of dates are used in different countries to mark the changes of seasons, especially those that are calendar based . These observances are often declared "official" within their respective jurisdictions by the local or national media, even when the weather or climate is contradictory . However they are mainly a matter of custom only, and have not generally been proclaimed by governments north or south of the equator for civil purposes . The Met Office in the UK uses a three - month definition, e.g. declaring "spring" to be March, April, and May . At least one researcher writing in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society compared various definitions to actual temperature changes, and recommended this three - month definition for general use in the United States . </P>

What is the second season of the year