Midland Naturalist/Volume 01/The Weather of October, 1878
Meteorology of the Midlands.
The Weather of October, 1878.
By W. Jerome Harrison, F.G.S.
Most of our observers agree in describing the weather as fairly fine and dry up to the 20th, but wet and stormy after that date to the end of the month. Whilst the rainfall was about the average, temperature was decidedly higher. The pressure of air, as indicated by the barometer, was very variable, a fact due to the rapid succession of depressions and anticyclones passing ever our Islands from the south-west to the north-east.
Thunderstorms are reported from Stroud on the 9th, Buxton on 28th and 30th, Weston-under-Lyziard on the 29th, Leicestershire 25th, Brampton St. Thomas on 28th, Spondon 28th to 30th,
Snow fell very generally on the 29th and 30th, it melted very soon; at Uppingham it was four inches in depth. Hail-storms were also frequent on the last three days of the month.
There was little or no frost till the very end of October, and, as a consequence of the mildness of the weather, many migratory birds delayed their departure, while flowers continued to bloom freely. Swallows appeared again at Stroud on the 16th; three were seen at Tamworth on the 15th. At Worksop these birds were seen as late as the 26th. The fieldfare arrived at Tamworth on the 16th; redwings and woodcocks were seen near Bishop's Castle on the same day, Ab Waltham bees were in full work on ivy and chrysanthemum till 22nd, and at Shifnal the red admiral and tortoiseshell butterflies were out till the 19th. when also a large dragon fly was seen hawking for flies, as in the height of summer. Primroses were gathered near Melton Mowbray on the 19th.
 | A table should appear at this position in the text. See Help:Table for formatting instructions. |
This work was published before January 1, 1930, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.
Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse