There was measurable rain on 10 days in the first three weeks of the month – about average – after which the “Beast from the East” set in, with exceptionally cold dry easterly winds from Siberia. This unusual weather pattern was due to warm air and high pressure over Canada and Greenland, leading to a...
Dr Phil Smith: Wildlife Notes January 2018
With 18 rain-days and the two named storms Eleanor and Georgina, January was wetter than average. This meant a welcome recovery in the dune water-table which returned to “normal” winter levels. I measured a rise of about 17cm at the Devil’s Hole blowout during the month, resulting in extensive flooding of the lower sections. This...
Dr Phil Smith: Wildlife Notes December 2017
An unremarkable month for weather, December 2017 started and ended relatively mild with a cold snap in the middle. Many parts of the country had considerable snow-fall but, as usual, barely a flake was seen here. However, it was a little wetter than average with measureable rain on 20 days, though many of those had...
Dr Phil Smith: Wildlife Notes November 2017
The average November rainfall for Formby is 89mm or 3.5 inches. We just about got that, with 16 rain-days, including a few short downpours between 20th and 23rd. This produced flooding in North Lancashire but I reckon we had about a tenth of their deluge. Some of the deeper dune-slacks began to show surface water...
