11th January 2012
Is Spring early?

In November we reported on the 'Wierd Autumn' and now it seems we're looking at an early spring!  Or are we?

The Woodland Trust are asking people to report signs of mild weather to 'Nature's Calendar' to compile data and get a bigger picture of nature's events across the country.  Our plants and wildlife are great indicators of changes in the weather and wider natural world.  This year snowdrops are coming out weeks early, hazel catkins have been budding since Christmas and even butterflies and bees are  buzzing about, taking advantage of a mild winter.

Although this seems strange it is actually becoming the norm says Dr. Kate Lewthwaite "Despite what people may think, in recent years it has become more commonplace to see daffodils and snowdrops in late December and early January as the climate warms."  After two extremely cold winters Britain has returned to a once familiar wet and mild season.  In fact, last December was the mildest December since 2006 and over 5 °C warmer than December 2010.  

What is surprising about this winter is the lack of frosts.  Frosts are when moisture in the air gets transformed into water vapour and then frost when temperatures cool below 0 degrees C.  The Woodland Trust reported that there were just four air frosts in the last three months of 2011, compared to 35 in 2010 and an average of 15 between 1878 and 2010.  So, although spring might not really be early there have been significant changes to temperatures, rainfall and frosts over the last few years.

Have you spotted any snowdrops or oak buds?  Let the Woodland Trust know!  They're especially interested to hear if frogs have been fooled into spawning early.  Is there any frog spawn in your garden or school pond?  The data given to the Woodland Trust will help them compare nature's trends to previous springs and help them determine whether this early trend will continue throughout 2012.

Photograph © William Warby CC BY 2.0

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