With small amounts of rain on only nine days during the month, May reinforced a statistically significant trend of lower spring rainfall here since 2000. A recent paper in the International Journal of Climatology confirms this trend for the UK as a whole, linking it to atmospheric pressure changes over Greenland brought about by...
Although measurable rain fell on ten days during the month, quantities were very small and temperatures above average. September therefore ended up as another desperately dry month, the duneland ground water-table being the lowest recorded since the drought of the mid -1990s. However, the often sunny weather brought out lots of late-summer insects, including one...
August was a rather cool and unsettled month, though rainfall amounts were no more than average, contrasting with record deluges in the south. The rain that did fall soon evaporated making little impact on the depleted water-table. The 50th anniversary bash for Ainsdale Sand Dunes National Nature Reserve on 8th fortunately coincided with a sunny...
Following June’s drought, July weather returned to “normal” with rainfall sufficient to restore straw coloured lawns and verges to a verdant green, while encouraging a blaze of colourful wild flowers along the coast. Birkdale Green Beach, in particular, produced a wonderful display, Common, Seaside and Lesser Centauries being especially prominent, together with the first of...