Greetings folks!
I hope you all are doing great. In my part of this region winter is coming with it’s full fledge. Though it never snows here but biting cold and fog always brings the harsh provision of gloomy weather.
However, this morning I was enjoying my morning coffee and was giving a glimpse at a Nature Magazine! It contained an article about the Meteorological and Ecological factors of a certain area in relation to its geographical situation as well as it’s climate factors.
The subtle thing that caught my attention was the fascinating examples of rapidly changing ambience. The writer was trying to put an example of a certain area from the Southern paper of the world and was trying to come to an ending point.
Many of my readers already know that the thing that attracts me the most is that I try to come up with such kinds of topics. So, today I want to share my thoughts along with the findings of my own. I simply try to focus on the Meteorological and Ecological reckoning of Winter! The season I most and adore the significant beauty of this Season. I hope you like it.
Meteorological reckoning is the method of measuring the winter season used by meteorologists based on "sensible weather patterns" for record keeping purposes. Winter is often defined by meteorologists to be the three calendar months with the lowest average temperatures. This is considered as the months of December, January and February in the Northern Hemisphere, and June, July and August in the Southern Hemisphere.
The coldest average temperatures of the season are typically experienced in January or February in the Northern Hemisphere and in June, July or August in the Southern Hemisphere. There is a thing called thermal winter that means temperatures are below 0 °C (32 °F) for five consecutive days. The crucial part is played by pressure and these low-pressure systems take more southern and northern routes, leaving the path open for high-pressure systems to come in and cold temperatures to occur. As a result, the coldest January pops in.
In the Southern Hemisphere, the more maritime climate and the relative lack of land south of 40°S makes the winters milder; thus, snow and ice are less common in inhabited regions of this region. In this region, snow occurs every year in elevated regions such as the Andes, the Great Dividing Range in Australia, and the mountains of New Zealand. And we all know that snow occurs year-round in Antarctica. Though I ain't an expert of this particular thing but these are my personal observations. And I must tell you that there are several distinct scientific theories regarding and they are amazing.
Ecological factors simply differ from calendar-based approach by avoiding the use of fixed dates. It is one of six seasons recognized by most ecologists. But I am not going to utter them again and again.
To survive the harshness of winter, many animals have developed different behavioral and morphological adaptations for overwintering:
Migration is a common effect of winter upon animals such as migratory birds. Some butterflies also migrate seasonally.
Hibernation is a state of reduced metabolic activity during the winter. Some animals literally "sleep" during winter and only come out when the warm weather returns; e.g., gophers, frogs, snakes, and bats.
Some animals store food for the winter and live on it instead of hibernating completely. This is the case for squirrels, beavers, skunks, badgers, and raccoons.
Some fur-coated mammals grow a heavier coat during the winter; this improves the heat-retention qualities of the fur. The coat is then shed following the winter season to allow better cooling. The heavier coat in winter made it a favorite season for trappers, who sought more profitable skins.
Snow also affects the ways animals behave; many take advantage of the insulating properties of snow by burrowing in it. Mice and voles typically live under the snow layer.Some annual plants never survive the winter. Other annual plants require winter cold to complete their life cycle; this is known as vernalization.
As for perennials, many small ones profit from the insulating effects of snow by being buried in it. Larger plants, particularly deciduous trees, usually let their upper part go dormant, but their roots are still protected by the snow layer. Few plants bloom in the winter, one exception being the flowering plum, which flowers in time for Chinese New Year. The process by which plants become acclimated to cold weather is called hardening.
Nature has it’s own unique treatment towards Winter. The entire ecological cycle of any region is fully or mostly depends on the temperature level. Seasons changes; new seasons come with their flying colours and bounty. We eagerly wait for them to celebrate. And I think we all should somehow be caring and more protective as well as humble to the Natural gifts and it’s abundance.
That's all for today my friends. See you soon..
With 💙
