Abstract
THE break in the series of severe war-time winters in Great Britain effected by the mild weather at the end of 1942 and in the early part of 1943 had an interesting effect upon the wild life of the English countryside compared with the previous three winters. Although in Scotland wildfowl and wild geese were reported to have been as numerous as in the previous season, in most parts of England the golden-eye, a characteristically abundant visitor in the previous war winters, was much less numerous. In west Cumberland in the middle of February the hatching of brown trout and sea-trout eggs was reported to be some thirty days in advance of the previous seasons, although in an article on “The Spawning Habits of Salmon” in the Field (February 6), G. M. King, clerk to the Dee Fishery Board, contends that in thirty-four years' experience he has failed to find that prevailing weather conditions affect the spawning time of these fish. In other parts of Lakeland there were many plants of red dead nettle, shepherd's purse, red campion, ivy-leaved toadflax, etc., in flower at Christmas. Over England generally the yellow winter jasmine was reported to have given one of the finest flowering displays for many years, and the songs of the song-thrush and skylark commenced several days earlier than usual. The missel-thrush was reported sitting on its nest in North Wales in February, and the song-thrush nestbuilding in Lancashire on February 6, and sitting on eggs on February 17. In Sussex and most other parts of Great Britain the exceptionally early pairing of partridge was also noted ; in Cumberland these birds had paired by Christmas. Another Sussex feature was the early breeding of rabbits. From the Home Counties there were many early reports of hazel flowers, male and female, recorded in the Times in January.
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Mild Winter of 1942–43. Nature 151, 330 (1943). https://doi.org/10.1038/151330b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/151330b0