[vernalpool] Re: where are peepers

Thanks Fran for raising the silent peeper issue. I was planning to also
write something about the same topic.

I am not convinced that peepers will show up again as usual. There have
two nights with ideal pepper calling conditions locally (near Concord, MA)
in the past week - last Wednesday 3/28 and this past Sunday, 4/1. Both
times, I heard no peepers. On the 28th, I drove through Assabet River NWR
at dusk with the temp around 50F and a drizzle but totally silent. Peepers
often call in MUCH colder and nastier conditions.

Although it is premature to pronounce this the end of spring peeper
breeding locally - only time will tell that - it is certainly weird that
they are dead quiet and have been since we had a little cold (e.g. more or
less normal) snap. My guess at this point is that the freakily warm
weather, followed by a cold snap and a prolonged winter drought, somehow
screwed up their breeding cues and that very many of the males may have
just called it a spring and gone home to feed.

The start to 2012 in northeastern Mass. (Jan 1. - March 31) has been BOTH
the warmest AND driest in some 150 years by a LARGE margin. Check out this
bit of info. from the Blue Hills Observatory comparing this year's weather
to their record dating back to the latter half of the 19th century (source,
http://www.bluehill.org/discussion.txt):

Yikes!
Bryan

The average temperature for March through the 31st was 43.4 deg F.
March 2012 finished 2nd warmest on record by just 0.1 degree.

BHO Warmest March, 1885-2012 (deg F)
1) 43.5 in 1946
2) 43.4 in 2012
3) 42.7 in 1945
4) 42.2 in 1903
5) 41.5 in 2010
*January-March 2012 finished as the warmest start to any year on record.
The average temperature from January 1st through March 31st is 36.3F.

BHO Warmest January-March, 1886-2012 (deg F)
1) 36.3 in 2012 [NEW RECORD]
2) 35.0 in 2002
3) 34.7 in 1998
4) 33.9 in 1990
5) 33.2 in 1953*
*The total precipitation since January 1st through March 31st is 6.09
inches. January-March 2012 finished as the driest start to any year on
record.

BHO Driest January-March, 1886-2012 (inches)
1) 6.09 in 2012 [NEW RECORD]
2) 7.20 in 1947
3) 7.39 in 1985
4) 7.92 in 1894
5) 7.97 in 2004
*
BHO Highest Monthly Average Temperature Departures (1885-1998)
1) [+10] January 1913
2) [+9.6] March 1946
3) [+9.4] January 1932
4) [+9.0] January 1937
February 1984
5) [+8.9] March 2012 **

** corrected from yesterday's report of of +9.0

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