Doomed

Droughts in the Pacific Northwest leading to increased fire danger -
"It will be hot, dry and a bad fire year for much of the West, Forest Service researchers are predicting."
LINK

Rain in the Northeast messing with summer businesses -
"Relentless rain and cool weather since early June have sent visitors scrambling home and washed away millions of tourism dollars across the Northeast....June was the wettest on record in Atlantic City, N.J., and the second-wettest in New York City. In Portland, rain fell on 21 of the final 24 days of the month. And July hasn't been much better. Rain continued and it was chilly, failing to hit 60 three times in Portland....Businesses that cater to tourists already anticipated a slow season because of the recession. Then they got a double whammy with the raw weather."
LINK

Rapid icemelt practically destroys small Alaskan town.

"Temperatures in some parts of Alaska soared into the 70s this week, causing a rapid "melt-out" of ice and snow along the Yukon River and unprecedented flooding that nearly wiped out the small community of Eagle.

...Borg says the Yukon rose 30 feet over its normal level when 4- to 7-foot-thick ice pans surged downstream, choking the river and bulldozing islands and shorelines. The devastation stretches for miles up and down the river, where trees have been sheared off and muddy banks scooped away like chocolate ice cream."

LINK

Acorns?

This is bizarre and horrible and fills one with foreboding.

" Up and down the East Coast, residents and naturalists alike have been scratching their heads this autumn over a simple question: Where are all the acorns?

In far-flung pockets of northern Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and other states, scientists have found no acorns whatsoever.
"I can't think of any other year like this," said Alonso Abugattas, director of the Long Branch Nature Center in Arlington, Virginia.

..."WHAT IS GOING ON?" posted a resident of Maplewood, New Jersey. "Now we are finding dead squirrels! SHOULD WE ALL BE CONCERNED?"
Not necessarily, naturalists say. Last year Garris reported a bumper crop of acorns, which scientists say may be one clue to this year's scarcity. Virginia extension agent Adam Downing said acorn production runs in cycles, so a lean year is normal after a year with a big crop.
"It fits with the physiology of seed reproduction. The trees are exhausted, energy wise, from last year," Downing said.
But even he is surprised at the complete absence of nuts in parts of Virginia.
"There are plenty of acorns in most of the state, but zero acorns in some pockets," he said." LINK

Seabirds not breeding.

"The poor breeding of Scotland's seabirds is giving cause for "serious concern", according to RSPB Scotland.
Early reports from coastal reserves indicate continuing problems for the internationally important populations of guillemots, kittiwakes and others.
Nests have been abandoned, with cliffs which "should be teeming" now empty.
..."At our Copinsay reserve on Orkney, the kittiwake population has plummeted drastically since the mid 1980s, when there were at least 10,000 birds on the cliffs, but today there are just under 2,000."
He added: "The declines are primarily being driven by changes in the availability of the fish that these birds depend on.
"Seabirds are indicators of the health of the marine environment and, like the canary in the coalmine, the decline in their fortunes should be a wake-up call to us all that we must pay attention to." LINK

Spring in England- headed out?

For some reason, as a child, I was obsessed-ish with the books of Noel Streatfield. One of them, Traveling Shoes, made repeated references to the poem Home Thoughts, from Abroad by Robert Browning, that I (obsessively) memorized. I can't imagine why I did this, but it left a deep imprint on my psyche.

Home Thoughts, from Abroad by Robert Browning

O, TO be in England

Now that April 's there,

And whoever wakes in England

Sees, some morning, unaware,

That the lowest boughs and the brushwood sheaf

Round the elm-tree bole are in tiny leaf,

While the chaffinch sings on the orchard bough

In England—now!

And after April, when May follows,

And the whitethroat builds, and all the swallows!

Hark, where my blossom'd pear-tree in the hedge

Leans to the field and scatters on the clover

Blossoms and dewdrops—at the bent spray's edge—

That 's the wise thrush; he sings each song twice over,

Lest you should think he never could recapture

The first fine careless rapture!

And though the fields look rough with hoary dew,

All will be gay when noontide wakes anew

The buttercups, the little children's dower—

Far brighter than this gaudy melon-flower!

Now, I had some reason to feel a connect with this, but I don't want to make this personal. All I want to emphasize is that Spring, in England, is magnificent. And it's heading out- or at least moving fast away from April. Robert Browning wouldn't know what to think.

"According to documented observations throughout 2007 and 2008, events in the natural world that used to be key spring indicators, from the blooming of flowers to the appearance of insects, are now increasingly happening in what used to be thought of as mid-winter, as Britain's temperatures steadily rise.

Although many people may see the changes as quaint or charming – butterflies certainly brighten up a January day – they are actually among the first concrete signs that the world is indeed set on a global warming course which is likely to prove disastrous if not checked...

It is happening so quickly, and without people realising its true significance, because, in Britain, the major effects of climate change are initially being felt as less cold winters, rather than as hotter summers.

Those are substantial rises. Although there is always natural variation in temperatures, recent winters taken together show a remarkable warming trend.
It has meant that many of what used to be thought of as the traditional signs of spring are happening very much earlier, causing primroses, for example, spring flowers par excellence, to bloom in some parts of the country as early as November. Other traditional spring plants, such as dog's mercury and the lesser celandine (a favourite of Wordsworth's) can be seen in January rather than March.
And in what is perhaps an even more vivid change, dandelions and daisies, which used to come into flower in spring on lawns (where they were permitted), now flower in many places all winter long. " LINK

Even the freaking trees are running away.

"Forty years ago, this part of the mountain would have been blanketed with cold-loving red spruce and balsam fir trees. But today, warmer-loving northern hardwoods such as sugar maples and American beech are taking over.

...in the transition zone, where northern hardwoods quickly give way to the dark spruce-fir forest, the change was dramatic.

...a study published earlier this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that found that the boundary between northern hardwoods and colder-loving trees shifted about 350 feet uphill in the last 40 years in response to warming temperatures." LINK

English climate out of whack- but it's not all just flowers and barbecues. Rats and discombobulated amateur photographers abound too!

"Barbecues and sunbathing were the order of the day when Britain enjoyed some of its hottest-ever February weather at the weekend.

The English hawthorn is expected to flower by the end of the month, more than eight weeks before it normally would. Crocuses opened 11 days in advance of the past decade’s average.

...Britain is facing a plague of rats because of changing weather. Online inquiries to Rentokil have risen by 300 per cent, with reports of more and larger rodents." LINK

All this early blooming is throwing off photographers too.

"Photographers could miss out on capturing pictures of spring flowers because they have appeared much earlier this year than in 2007, warns Kew Gardens in Surrey. " LINK

Fark's headline is unbelievably perfect so here it is: NOAA's official, scientific, statement on yesterday's crazy weather in Midwest: "Wow Crazy"

And how true it is. So glad that my friend in Missouri (Where "Tornadoes were reported or suspected Monday in southwest Missouri,") was not in the tornadoes way (only the flash floods, right?) ;)

But still- pretty ridiculous. It sounds like it was pretty, well, crazy, no? (seriously, so funny!)


"NOAA'S National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office

Milwaukee/Sullivan Wisconsin

Wow - crazy weather over southern Wisconsin for January 6th & 7th!
If you think the weather can’t make up its mind, you’re correct. We seem to have a little bit of everything going on. Let’s try to summarize the recent crazy weather, and make some sense out of it.

Get ready, get set, go.....

1. The Milwaukee/Sullivan NWS office issued 3 different Severe Thunderstorm Warnings for 4 counties during the morning hours of January 7th due to the likelihood of penny-size hail stones. This is crazy - in the past 14 years, this office never had a reason to issue a Severe Thunderstorm Warning in the month of January. Winter storm warnings and blizzard warnings - yes, but not Severe Thunderstorm Warnings. Several severe weather spotters reported hailstones up to 1/2 inch in diameter, and an amateur radio operator measured hailstones up to penny size about 4 miles west-southwest of the Capitol Square in Madison at 10:30 A.M. The last time we experienced severe weather in a winter month was February, 1999, when storms in southern Wisconsin produced hail up to golf-ball size and wind gusts to 70 mph. Crazy.

2. Many streams and rivers in southern Wisconsin are running at near-bankfull or bankfull stage, and some have exceeded flood stage. Some rivers are forecast to exceed flood stage. Normally, river flooding is a spring-time event due to snow melt and heavy rains, or perhaps a summer event due to very heavy thunderstorm rains. But in January? Crazy. We’ve experienced a noteworthy warm up the past couple days along with some rain, which caused the 15 to 33 inches of snow that fell in December, 2007 to melt. The Fox River at New Munster in western Kenosha County is forecast to crest at 13.2 feet around the noon hour on Thursday, January 10th. Crazy.

3. We have areas of dense fog this morning which continues a period of several days of dense fog. The worst of the dense fog occurred on January 6th. There was a group of multiple-vehicle accidents (about 100 vehicles) on Interstate 90/39 about 2:25 P. M. just south of the interchange with State Highway 12/18, in which there were two fatalities and around 50 injuries that required medical treatment Dense fog was a factor and had reduced visibilities to 25 to 100 yards in that area. Crazy.

4. Temperatures over southeastern Wisconsin rose to the upper 50s to lower 60s in the early afternoon hours of January 7th, with dewpoints in the mid to upper 50s, while southwest winds gusted to 25 to 30 mph. This is spring-time weather - more typical of April. Milwaukee’s temperature reached 63 degrees, smashing the old record of 47 for January 7th set back in 2003. Madison reached 50, which broke their old January 7th record set back in 2003. Milwaukee tied their old record high for January 6th of 52 set back in 1933. Crazy.

Return to Top News of the Day

LINK to NOAA page

2008 bringing flowers- in January. In England. Yup. Start of a great year.

"Britain may still be in the grip of grey mid-winter, but that hasn't stopped dozens of sunny wild daffodils springing up months earlier than usual in time for the dawn of New Year.

Yesterday this was the glorious blaze of colour in Cornwall, where row upon row of bright yellow flowers burst forth on a dark winter's day.

At the Royal Botanical Gardens in Kew, which monitors 100 plant species, at least two thirds of plants have shifted their flowering patterns.

There, lilacs which are supposed to flower in May have come into life already this winter and another traditional spring flower, camelias have also blossomed.

And months ahead of schedule, primroses have been seen flourishing in Sussex, crab apples in Nottingham and wild strawberries in Cardiff. "

LINK

huh.

"It's Friday - a good time for a little odd global warming news. Seems the number of cats and kittens being brought to animal shelters in the United States has spiked by about 30 percent over the past couple of years.

Why? Kathy Warnick, president of a national adoption organization called Pets across America says "Cats are typically warm-weather, spring-time breeders. However, states that typically experience primarily longer and colder winters are now seeing shorter, warmer winters, leading to year-round breeding."

With no "reproductive lull," more kittens are being brought to animal shelters during the winter months. "
LINK

Climate change + flower shows = "unprecedented challenges"

"Last month's record temperatures mean that spring is up to a month in advance of its normal period over much of the country - and as a result, the flowers being carefully nurtured for Chelsea, which opens a week on Monday, have been blooming far too early.

A panoply of gardening tricks is having to be employed by growers to hold back the march of nature and keep prize specimens from "going over" before the Royal Horticultural Society's flagship annual event, one of the world's premier gardening festivals. Those tricks range from cold stores and dark tunnels, to constant movement of plants in and out of light and warmth, repeated deadheading - and even individual "straitjackets" for flower buds.

Another problem has been a plague of pests. Jekka McVicar, who is growing organic herbs at Alveston, near Bristol for her Chelsea exhibit, has found so many greenfly on plants such as lettuce and mint that she has had to brush them off with a dry paint brush (not being able to use pesticides as an organic grower). "It's very time-consuming," she said.

Chris Beardshaw, who is recreating an Edwardian country house garden, said that columbines, for example, which had already flowered, were having to be replaced with achilleas. "Normally you would not expect achilleas to flower until late June or even early July," he said." LINK

Weird weather threatens fruit crops in US

"Peaches usually don’t bloom until around April 10, Wooten told NBC affiliate KYTV of Springfield, but because of the freezing weather, “this year, we were in bloom in the middle of March, and that’s just never happened before.” LINK

Climate change leads to twice as many mushrooms

"Climate change could turn the autumnal fungus foray in Britain into a year-round event, say researchers who have recorded changes in fruiting patterns over the past half-century.

In the autumn, the UK mushroom season has doubled in length, from about 33 days in the 1950s, to nearly 75 days now, they say. Fungi are starting to fruit earlier, and finishing later.

And some species are fruiting in both spring and autumn — a unique development in response to rising temperatures, says Alan Gange of Royal Holloway, University of London. Although it has been shown that climate change is making birds nest and flowers bloom earlier, he knows of nothing else that has added a complete extra breeding season to its life cycle." LINK

Climate change affecting Scottish salmon, too.

"For more than 150 years, the start of Scotland's salmon fishing season on the river Tay has been celebrated in the middle of January.
But the apparent impact of climate change on spawning patterns has forced conservationists and anglers to postpone this year's official seasonal opening on sections of the waterway for two weeks.
For the first time in decades, salmon fishing in parts of Perthshire has had to be delayed because the fish, which begin breeding in earnest as soon as the first heavy frost of winter starts to bite, have been thrown into confusion by the mild weather."
LINK

Soon there'll be no salmon. I can't face a world without smoked salmon.

More disruption in the animal world, this time in Canada.

"The balmy weather has tricked many members of the wildlife community into altering their usual migration schedules, sleeping habits and feeding and breeding patterns.
Wildlife biologists, ornithologists and zoologists working in the Montreal area are concerned the survival of some of these animals could be threatened in coming months.
Some animal anarchy reported in the area includes:
Canada geese, which usually migrate south, are staying put. An annual Montreal Christmas bird count found an all-time high number of the waterfowl - 2,832 - on the open water of the St. Lawrence River. The previous record was 1,185 Canada geese, counted in 2001.
Raccoons and skunks are forgoing their short but important hibernation period and burning up stored fat that they will need in the event of a deep freeze.
Eastern grey squirrels, Montreal's most common variety, are feeding instead of nesting - and getting fatter. At the same time, the fox squirrel, a bigger, reddish-brown animal with a more southerly range, has been moving into this region.
Opossums, marsupials usually associated with the U.S. South, are invading southern Quebec.
"There's a pile of stuff going on," said Lynn Miller, a wildlife biologist at Le Nichoir, a bird refuge in Hudson. "There will be winners and losers."
LINK

My bulbs are up, it's January, what do I do?

I am so glad to finally read something with some concrete advice, although I am a lazy sod, who will probably not follow any of it. If, however, you have the energy, willpower, and willingness to have the back of your car forever filled with straw, here's what you can do to try to save your plants.

"Brian Minor of Minor's Garden Center on Milwaukee's northwest side said that if the mercury plunges quickly, this year's plant growth could die.
But if snow falls and leaves a blanket of insulation, or the temperature falls slowly, the plants should be fine, he said.
He recommends covering them with straw but not until a day or so before the temperature is predicted to drop sharply.
Steve Kolowith, owner of Bayside, suggested covering bulb plants right away - perhaps with a cut-up Christmas tree."
LINK

This guy gets the Doom!

From the usually staid and buttoned-down Washington Post "Never has good weather felt so bad. Never have flowers inspired so much fear. Never has the warm caress of a sunbeam seemed so ominous. The weather is sublime, it's glorious, it's the end of the world."
Believe it or not, italics are his. LINK! It's a good one.

Hear that sound? Yeah, that was my heart breaking.

"A birdseed factory in Shropshire, a holy lake in China, Baltic Sea fish and new-born hedgehogs have emerged as the first tangible victims of climate change in the year which forecasters predicted this week would be the warmest on record."

LINK

A water-skier in a wet suit was recently seen on the Mississippi River near St. Paul, Minnesota.

"Crocuses are pushing out of the ground in New Jersey. Ice fishing tournaments in Minnesota are being canceled for lack of ice. And golfers are hitting the links in Chicago in January."
LINK

??? This is news? Cherry trees here bloomed in November.

"At the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, it hardly seems like the dead of winter. " blah blah blah, "the most bizarre weather-related incident happened in Brooklyn where cherry blossoms decided to make an early appearance."



Well, ok, strange indeed. But the thing that set me off and made me decide to make this blog was the appearance of blooms on a cherry tree on URI campus, back in November. The lovely and talented Jessica was kind enough to comment on the photo I posted at my myspace, and our ensuing conversation led me to go ahead and blog it out.



So read the article, if you have the urge, or go to URI campus between the Engineering Quad and Tyler Hall, and ogle confused nature for yourself.
Or, I think I finally figured out how to get a photo on here, so here's a local tree doing that same, sad thing.