Weather Trivia

Animal/Weather Trivia/Myths(?)

This is a bit of info I have known since my younger days:  you can tell the temperature in the summer by the number of cricket chirps in 15 seconds.  The formula is T=c+40 where ‘c’ is the number of chirps.  The premise is the warmer it is the more the crickets chirp.  Thirty chirps in 15 seconds would equal 70°.  It is amazing that we have made up a mathematical formula to confirm this.

Frogs are said to croak even longer and louder than usual when bad weather is on the horizon. When you hear their volume increase, you can assume a storm is brewing.  The frogs in my area can neither confirm nor deny this.

It’s been said that if birds are flying high, the weather is clear. But if they’re flying closer to the ground, the air pressure of a storm system is causing them pain at higher altitudes.

When cows sense bad weather, they become restless and antsy and begin to swat flies with their tails or lie down in the pasture to save a dry spot.

When bees and butterflies disappear from the flower beds, you can expect some heavy weather coming your way.

Whether true or not we could say they are affected by (high and low) pressure changes…

Some scientists believe that toads can sense when an earthquake is about to happen. In 2009, a colony of toads abandoned its pond in L’Aquila, Italy, days before a quake hit the area. The colony went from 96 toads to almost zero over three days. Scientists concluded that shifts under the earth before the quake could have changed the chemistry of the toads’ pond.

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Weather History

Sep 29, 1927
An outbreak of tornadoes from Oklahoma to Indiana caused 81
deaths and 25 million dollars damage. A tornado (possibly two
tornadoes) cut an eight-mile long path across Saint Louis MO, to
Granite City IL, killing 79 persons. The damage path at times
was a mile and a quarter in width. The storm followed a similar
path to tornadoes which struck in 1871, 1896, and 1959.
IN 1986…A week of violent weather began in Oklahoma which
culminated in one of the worst flooding events in the history of
the state. On the first day of the week early morning thunderstorms
caused more than a million dollars damage in south Oklahoma City.
Thunderstorms produced 4 to 7 inches of rain from Hobart to Ponca
City, and another round of thunderstorms that evening produced 7
to 10 inches of rain in north central and northeastern sections
of Oklahoma.

Sep 30, 1985
The low of 29 degrees established the record low for the month of
September at Dodge City.

Oct 1, 1893
The second great hurricane of the 1893 season hit the Mississippi
Delta Region drowning more than 1000 persons.
IN 1998…Heavy rain fell across the Liberal area for 24 hours with
the heaviest rain falling between 8 am and 5 pm. Five to eight inches
were reported with one unofficial report indicating 10 inches.
Streets were flooded that had never flooded before. A local
disaster was declared.

Oct 2, 1898
A hurricane struck the Georgia coast washing away Campbell Island.

Oct 3, 1912
The longest dry spell of record in the U.S. commenced as Bagdad
CA went 767 days without rain.
IN 1986…Remnants of Hurricane Paine deluged Oklahoma and
southeastern Kansas with 6 to 10 inch overnight rains. Hardy Oklahoma
was drenched with 21.79 inches. Heavy rain between September 26th and
October 4th caused 350 million dollars damage in Oklahoma.

Oct 4, 1777
The battle of Germantown was fought in a morning fog that grew more
dense with the smoke of battle, causing great confusion. Americans
firing at each other contributed to the loss of the battle.

Oct 5, 1638
The journal of John Winthrop recorded that a mighty tempest struck
eastern New England. This second severe hurricane in three years
blew down many trees in mile long streaks.