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Birds and flowers in Ireland think it is springtime already

Mild winter fools animals and plants as high temperatures last

By
PATRICK COUNIHAN,
IrishCentral Staff Writer
Published Monday, January 16, 2012, 7:26 AM
Updated Monday, January 16, 2012, 11:19 AM

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Spring is on its way: High temperatures in Ireland fool flowers and birds into thinking it's spring
Spring is on its way: High temperatures in Ireland fool flowers and birds into thinking it's spring
Photo by Google Images


Ireland’s mild winter has the birds and the bees confused – and the plants are none too certain about what time of year it is either!

Technically it is still winter time in Ireland but a year on from the arctic conditions of 2011, there is a spring feel to the air.

The snow ploughs are sitting in cold storage and the gritters are back at bay thanks to the above average air and soil temperatures.

The birds are making the most of it after two horrific winters in a row threatened many species while the Irish Times reports that plants think it is already Spring.

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Birdwatch Ireland spokesman Niall Hatch told the paper: “We’ve had phone calls from people saying they have fewer birds than normal, like robins, blue tits and starlings coming into their gardens.

“People are worried that something has happened to them but natural foraging is easy for them at the moment thanks to the weather.”

The paper reports that stocks of Ireland’s smallest and second smallest birds, the goldcrest and the wren, were hit by two harsh winters in a row but Hatch says that this year’s milder winter should herald a population boost after bitterly cold winters in 2009 and 2010.

“There were lots of babies around in the autumn of 2010 but then a cold winter hit again and it killed most of them off; the sad reality is that most of them don’t survive,” added Hatch.

“This winter, however, has been so mild that a higher proportion than usual of these babies survived and we are seeing these species bouncing back, which is good news.”

It’s a similar story in the plant world, according to the Irish Times. Records taken at the National Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin show that plants are now putting out their leaves two weeks earlier than they did 40 years ago.

The native cowslip is already in full bloom, cow parsley is flowering also and strawberries are in full flower.

National Botanic Gardens director Matthew Jebb said, “As far as these plants are concerned, it’s spring. To have strawberries flower two months ahead shows what an odd year we’ve been having.”

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4 Comments

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passageyank | Jan 16, 2012, 01:04 PM EST
What's really interesting is the guy talking about the birds is named "Hatch".

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bunkerisland | Jan 16, 2012, 10:37 AM EST
In one edition you tell us it is a White Christmas with icy roads and frozen water lines and the next daffodils bloom. Sounds like New England!

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carrickcourt | Jan 16, 2012, 10:37 AM EST
Interesting about the report on birds in Ireland this winter. Here in the northwest hills of Connecticut, USA I was amazed to find an eastern phoebe flycatcher on 17 Dec 2011 during the Christmas Bird Count here. Glad to hear the wrens (winter wrens here in the USA) are doing well in Ireland. The wrens are one of most common birds in Ireland.

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GeorgeDillon | Jan 16, 2012, 10:19 AM EST
Yes, I was in Dublin last week and the weather was pretty mild. I saw some daffodils in bloom. I had to laugh at all the Polish women walking around like they were part of the Retreat from Moscow--fur hats, long boots, heavy coats, thick gloves, ear-muffs etc.--and all of that when the temperature was 55 degrees! They do the exact opposite in the Irish summer, when they get down to the bare minimum, even when the temperature is-- also 55 degrees.

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