A change in climate: Global warming in Wisconsin

[LiberalFighter]

A change in climate: Global warming in Wisconsin Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 3/24/2007

Town of Fairfield - On a warm winter day, Nina Leopold Bradley walked nimbly along a trail to a weather-beaten cabin that figures prominently in modern environmental history.

Bradley is 89 years old, and using a pair of hiking poles, she pointed out places where she has recorded the arrival of spring for the last 30 years. Her father, the famed ecologist and pioneer of wildlife management Aldo Leopold, had done the same before her.

But spring's advance has been so dramatic that if Leopold were alive today, he'd have to rewrite parts of his seminal book, "A Sand County Almanac."

Take, for example, the Canada geese. Leopold wrote that they "tumbled out of the sky like maple leaves" in March.

Comments

She says they returned a more than a month sooner.

This place is north of Madison and near Wisconsin Dells and Portage.

[villager]

1. I've been thinking about Leopold a lot this week...

Was unpacking some books and came across an additional copy of "Sand County Almanac," which belonged to a late, missed friend -- was looking at his bookmarks, his margin notes in that particular copy.

And wondering, the whole while, what ol' Aldo might make of the present madcap juncture, and the extreme eco-peril we're in, and the deranged "leadership" we have, while we're in it...

[LiberalFighter]

3. My grandpa knew the guy. I believe helped him. Just up the road.

[villager]

4. Wow. Any good stories about him, from Grandpa?

to this day, his essay on the dying "Green fire" in a wolf's eyes, remains unforgettable.

[LiberalFighter]

8. Not really. I think I saw the shanty they lived in for their research

Not very big

[villager]

9. and I assume the prairie/tall grasses and woodlands...

...Leopold loved have been ransacked by homo "sapiens?" Or are some still as they were, in his day?

[LiberalFighter]

10. Saw that every time driving down the river road and whenever

I went down to the river

[madrchsod]

2. where i am at in northern illinois

ducks started nesting all year round in the early 1960`s .it was`t until after the brutally cold winter of 76-79 that the population of ducks and geese started growing to it`s current populations. chicago now has to disrupt the nests of geese because their population is becoming both a nuisance and a hazard.
but never fear, there is no global warning says the preacher man...

[jwirr]

5. Over here in MN they are back and we had thunder and lightning

a couple of nights ago. There is still some snow on the ground but it rained today. Spring definitely seems to be here.

[zulchzulu]

6. People I know who've live in WI for years say the climate is way off

One guy I know says that Madison would have snow pretty much from Halloween to May and the lakes would freeze by mid-November.

The lakes froze in January this year and are thawing out this weekend. Some events that would be on Lake Mendota cancelled due to no possibility of safe ice thickness.

[htuttle]

7. It was in the mid '70's here today

I expect the lakes will be entirely clear of ice by Monday or Tuesday this week.

[zulchzulu]

11. Yesterday and today break records for hot days

80 yesterday smashing a 100 year record by 7 degrees and today is expected to be 85 smashing records ever recorded...and yes, the ice is gone on both lakes.

[htuttle]

12. I suspect the beaches will begin filling up this week

We're currently torn between leaving the plastic on our windows for a few more weeks just in case, or putting our air conditioner in now.