20 signs that show spring has SPRUNG
FORGET SNOW BOOTS AND BLACK ICE – IT’S TAPS AFF TIME
THIS time last year it was amber warnings, snow boots and black ice. This year it’s shorts.
As temperatures break all records for this time of year, conservationists warn that the unseasonably warm weather can disrupt the natural cycles of birds, animals and plants. To say nothing of humans who, 12 months ago, were facing down the icy challenges of the Beast from the East.
Migration, nesting, hibernation and mating are all out of sync, while gardens that should just be starting to see some crocuses are ablaze with daffodils and other spring flowers.
While the temperature is set to drop a little today, as showers move in from the Atlantic, the average temperatures are still way above the 7C to 9C average for February. The warm days at the start of the week make this February set to be the warmest since records began in 1878.
The Met Office said the short-term explanation is “a dome of high pressure across continental Europe.” This is shielding us from the worst of the low pressure while encouraging a flow of warm air.
The bigger picture, however, is of a planet that’s getting hotter. The Met Office said: “Climate change is probably responsible for tipping us over the 20C threshold.”
As the seasons turn upsidedown and it’s even than usual harder to dress for the Scottish weather, we look at what this month’s unseasonably high temperatures mean. 1 The record books are being rewritten on a daily basis. On Monday, it was 20.8C in Gwynedd, Wales. Then on Tuesday, Kew Gardens in London recorded 21.2C. 2 Birds are migrating early. Swallows and house martins spend the cold months in southern Africa and normally return to the UK in April and May. This year they are back already. 3 It’s a gamble for them. The first arrivals will get the best nesting sites but if the weather turns against them, they may struggle to find enough food. 4 Rooks are one of the first species to start getting ready to lay its eggs. But blackbirds, robins and dunnocks have also started nesting already.
5 Ladybirds have not only started appearing, they are mating. They are usually dormant until March then spend a couple of months looking for food before getting it on in May. 6 The garden smells great. Winter-flowering shrubs such as daphnes, honeysuckles and witch hazels, already doing well after last summer, have large, lush blooms which give off more perfume. 7 Some places have had spring for so long, they’re ready for summer. The first snowdrops were spotted in Southampton on November 30. Early daffodils had begun flowering in the southeast of England by late December. 8 Bumblebees, brimstone butterflies and queen wasps have also been spotted out and about. 9 Frogspawn, which does not usually appear in Scotland until March or April, has been seen in burns and ponds. 10a So have ducklings, at least
month ahead of schedule. 11woken The high temperatures have
up hedgehogs. They would normally remain in hibernation until late March or early April. 12 Cherry trees, which normally bloom in May, have burst into flower. 13 All this tree pollen is causing grief to hay fever sufferers who have been forced to crack out the Piriton months earlier than usual. 14 Air pollution is also at levels more usually associated with June and July. On Tuesday, London Mayor Sadiq Khan issued the capital’s first high-pollution alert of the year. 15 Folks following the sun had a right to feel humpy as the UK was hotter than Malibu, Athens and Ibiza this week. 16 There have been isolated spottings of taps aff. See also shorts, vest tops and bare legs. 17 The public barbecues in Strathclyde country park have been used. 18 The gorse on Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh was so dry it caught fire on Tuesday. Around 800m of the bush blazed well into the night. 19 There were also fires on Saddleworth Moor in Yorkshire and Glyndyfrdwy in Wales. 20 Instead of making soups and stews, people have been buying cold drinks, rose wine and ice lollies. On Monday, Sainsbury’s reported ice cream sales were up 370 per cent on the previous year.