Wildlife under threat as ‘lost’ winters cause confusion

Wildlife in Scotland and the UK is being confused by “lost” winters, conservationists warn, as insects, amphibians and nesting birds are spotted earlier in the year than usual.

Wildlife is being confused by "lost" winters, conservationists warn as butterflies, newts and nesting blackbirds are spotted earlier than normal. Picture: Owen Humpreys/PA Wire

The latest data from Nature’s Calendar, which asks members of the public to record signs of the changing seasons, shows that active butterflies and newts and blackbirds building nests have already been spotted months before their normal dates.

And analysis of conditions in 2019 found that all but one of 50 spring events the scheme tracks were seen early last year, amid warmer winter temperatures.

The Woodland Trust, which runs the Nature’s Calendar scheme, warns that many species are losing their seasonal cues as winters warm and the seasons shift as a result of climate change.

Some creatures could be tempted out of hibernation too soon and be hit by plunging temperatures as a result of increasingly erratic weather.

Meanwhile some birds appeared to be breeding too late to make the most of vital food sources, the charity said.

Lorienne Whittle, Nature’s Calendar citizen science officer at the Woodland Trust, said: “It seems that last year we almost lost winter as a season – it was much milder and our data shows wildlife is responding, potentially putting many at risk.

“Our records are showing random events such as frogspawn arriving far earlier than expected, possibly to be wiped out when a late cold snap occurs.”

She added: “It appears that some species are able to adapt to the advancing spring better than others.

“Oak trees respond by producing their first leaves earlier and caterpillars seem to be keeping pace.

“But blue tits, great tits and pied flycatchers are struggling to react in time for their chicks to take advantage of the peak amount of caterpillars, the food source on which they depend.”

The breeding season for blackbirds usually begins in March and can last up to the end of July. They typically have two or three broods, although as many as four have been recorded in a single season.

Great crested newts breed in ponds in spring and spend most of the rest of the year in woodlands, hedgerows, marshes and grassland. They spend winter hibernating underground and are usually seen from March.

Warmer winter weather has also led to a rise in winter sightings of butterflies such as the red admiral.