Most of the weekend will be nice, but a weakening cool front will bring some clouds Sat. afternoon & a few showers. Rainfall amounts will be light -- less than a quarter of an inch -- & not everyone will get the showers. As the front moves away, Sun. will be warm & dry with lots of sun & afternoon temps. into at least the low 80s. Offshore winds both days will allow beaches to be quite warm too -- not far from 80 degrees.
A viewer sent me the photo below of an unusual-looking insect asking me if I knew what it was. I did not but called on the expertise of our Jax Zoo & Gardens. Turns out this is a Luna Moth. Apparently the moths are pretty common in the Eastern U.S. including Florida but their tendency to fly at night & only a one week life span make them a rare find. Get the info. by clicking here.
The New Madrid fault shook a bit early Fri. The 5.2 magnitude earthquake was relatively shallow -- about 7 miles below the surface of the earth some 40 north/northwest of Evansville, IN. The quake could be felt as far south as the Florida Panhandle. Midwest quakes have a tendency to be felt further from the epicenter & can do more damage (than a quake of similar intensity on the west coast, for example) because of their tendency to be shallow combined with the soil & topography of the midwest. While the Jacksonville area is not prone to earthquakes, we're not totally out of the woods. Just 2 yrs. ago in Sept. a Gulf of Mexico earthquake could be felt in Jax & caused some minor damage along the Gulf Coast...and a fault line in the Carolina's poses a threat as does a fault line in the Caribbean (potentially). Click here to view a powerpoint built by N.W.S. Bill Proenza.
Our Jax Zoo & Gardens is celebrating Earth Day this weekend:
Party for the Planet at the
Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens!
Earth Day Celebration – Sunday, April 20
- Jacksonville, Fl - The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens will host an Earth Day event, “Party for the Planet!” on Sunday, April 20, 2008 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Guests can visit experts at environmental and animal conservation booths to learn and collect valuable information on how to preserve our earth and its wildlife for future generations. They can also enjoy live entertainment, a children’s activity area and visits with Jazoo, the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens’ friendly lion mascot. A $2 discount on admission will be offered to all adults, seniors and children who bring a used cell phone to be recycled on April 20th.
“Conservation of our earth and its wildlife is central to what we are all about at the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens,” said Dennis Pate, executive director of the Zoo. “It is our responsibility to play a leading role in educating our visitors about these issues every day. We’re pleased to have 16 other organizations that are just as committed to this cause participating in sharing their knowledge with our guests during our Earth Day celebration.”
The Party for the Planet celebration is an annual event sponsored by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). Zoos from all over the country that are members of the AZA participate. For more information about conservation and how you can help, visit here.
Earth Gauge: Just Passing Through
Birds are on the move! Migratory birds have amazing adaptations that help them find their way from their wintering grounds in Mexico, Central, and South America, to the U.S. and Canada, where they feast on abundant insects and plant foods during spring and summer. How do they know when to leave and where to go?
Birds that fly long distances have an "internal clock" that tells them when it's time to prepare for migration and be on their way. Scientists think that subtle environmental cues (which are not well-understood in wintering grounds) trigger hormonal production in birds, which causes changes in behavior and physiology that prepare them for migration.
Birds that migrate short distances (such as within the U.S.), including most waterfowl, learn migration routes and breeding areas from older individuals who are more experienced - usually their family members. On the other hand, most long-distance migrants are "genetically programmed" to head in a specific direction, for a specific distance. A bird's first long-distance migration is completely genetically-determined, but more experienced birds may incorporate information they've learned on the journey into their migration route. For example, if a bird finds a breeding location that is especially good, they may use learned information to return to that location in future years.
Tip: There are still many mysteries surrounding bird migration, but one thing is certain: birds need habitat and fuel to help them along their way. In the Southern U.S., purple martins, scarlet tanagers, and Eastern wood peewees are passing through over the next few weeks. A bird bath or water hole with fresh water will be welcome sight for migrants, and providing a varied supply of seeds and plants in your yard will attract a variety of feathered visitors at any time of year. Enjoy the view!
Regional migrant information was provided by the National Wildlife Federation. For more about migrants in your area, visit here.
(Source: Deinlein, M. "Neotropical Migratory Bird Basics." Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Migratory Bird Center.
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Climate Fact: Aquifer Invasion
When the Earth warms, as it has since the Little Ice Age ended in about 1850, waters expand and ice melts. These factors cause global sea levels to rise. Over the Twentieth Century, the Planet’s seas rose at an average rate of 0.8 inches per decade, and since 1993 this rise has accelerated to 1.3 inches per decade. Subsurface layers of rock or sediment where groundwater flows freely are known as aquifers. In coastal aquifers, a layer of freshwater sits on top of denser saltwater. As the sea level rises, the shore moves further inland, and in the groundwater, the layer of saltwater comes closer to the surface of the aquifer and moves further inland. This results in mixing of the fresh and salt waters and contamination of groundwater resources. Also, until recently, it was assumed that the magnitude of the saltwater intrusion into the aquifer would be the same as the inland movement of the shore at the surface. Depending on the make-up of the coastline (i.e. fine or coarse sand, rock, and how these types of sand and rock are layered), however, the intrusion of the saltwater into the aquifer can be between ten and fifteen percent greater than the inland movement of the shore. In other words, if the shore advances ten yards inland, the saltwater layer in the aquifer can move between 11 and 15 yards inland. America’s coastal areas are its most densely populated regions, and an estimated fifty percent of our Nation’s water supply comes from groundwater.
(Sources: The United Nations: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Fourth Assessment. Working Group 2: Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability, Chapter 6 and Rahmstorf, S. et al. “Recent Climate Observations Compared to Projections.” Science 316 (2007): 709 and Burkett, Virginia, et al. Potential Consequences of Climate Variability and Change for the Southeastern United States. (Washington, DC) US Climate Change Science Program / US Global Change Research Program [2001] November 3, 2006 and “Climate Change Threatens Drinking Water, As Rising Sea Penetrates Coastal Aquifers.” Science Daily 7 November 2007. Accessed online 18 March 2008)
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Climate in the News – “'Citizen scientists' record warming data” – USA Today, 7 April 2008
All across the Nation, citizens are observing budbursts and sending data to scientists in order to build a better understanding of changes in plant life-cycles.
Have a great & safe weekend.........
