Britain's migratory birds arriving 'too soon', say Kent experts
She added: "We've got tens of thousands of visitors at Pegwell Bay, a Site of Special Scientific Interest, with the birds needing more time to settle into the area and the seals pupping right in the middle of the summer holidays."The harbour seals at Pegwell Bay haul up onto estuary beaches and give birth early in summer, but this year they started pupping right as the holidays began, sparking concern they would be disturbed by jet skis and kayakers.Migratory birds are studied on the Kent coast as they travel to Europe and back - and the experts at the Sandwich Bay Bird Observatory Trust said they had seen a marked difference this year.
Jonathan Bull, assistant warden at the Sandwich Bay Bird Observatory Trust, said: "It's just the heat. "It accelerates things, so the berries have come out really early and the crossbills have done really well on their breeding grounds so we're likely to have a record year for them this year."Then for some species, like the swifts, the migration window has got smaller, so our swift passage has already come and gone."Climate change is affecting the timings of biological events including spring and autumn, according to the Met Office, although the level of change varies year-to-year.The Met Office says this summer is on track to be one of the warmest since records began in 1884.Conservationists in Kent are asking people to be even more mindful than usual of keeping dogs on leads.They also advise those doing water sports to avoid going near birds or animals in kayaks or on jetskis and that everyone should be aware that they may be sharing their summer holiday beaches with wildlife.
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The Independent
3 hours ago
- The Independent
2 more beachfront homes near collapse as a hurricane waves pound North Carolina's Outer Banks
Two homes on the North Carolina Outer Banks sit precariously in the high waves with their days seemingly numbered. Since 2020, 11 neighboring homes have fallen into the Atlantic Ocean. While the swells from storms like Hurricane Erin make things worse, the conditions threatening the houses are always present — beach erosion and climate change are sending the ocean closer and closer to their front doors. The two houses in the surf in Rodanthe have received plenty of attention as Erin passes several hundred miles (kilometers) to the east. The village of about 200 people sticks out further into the Atlantic than any other part of North Carolina. Jan Richards looked at the houses Tuesday as high tides sent surges of water into the support beams on the two-story homes. She gestured where two other houses used to be before their recent collapse. 'The one in the middle fell last year. It fell into that house. So you can see where it crashed into that house. But that has been really resilient and has stayed put up until probably this storm,' Richards said. The ocean has destroyed at least 11 houses since 2020 At least 11 other houses have toppled into the surf in Rodanthe in the past five years, according to the National Park Service, which oversees much of the Outer Banks. Barrier islands like the Outer Banks were never an ideal place for development, according to experts. The islands typically form as waves deposit sediment off the mainland. And they move based on weather patterns and other ocean forces. Some even disappear. Decades ago, houses and other buildings were smaller, less elaborate and easier to move from the encroaching surf, said David Hallac, superintendent of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. 'Perhaps it was more well understood in the past that the barrier island was dynamic, that it was moving,' Hallac said. 'And if you built something on the beachfront it may not be there forever or it may need to be moved.' The Outer Banks even had to move their famous lighthouse from the sea Even the largest structures aren't immune. Twenty-six years ago the Outer Banks most famous landmark, the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse had to be moved over a half-mile (880 meters) inland. When it was built in 1870, the lighthouse was 1,500 feet (457 meters) from the ocean. Fifty years later, the Atlantic was 300 feet (91 meters) away. And erosion keeps coming, Some places along the Outer Banks lose as much as 10 to 15 feet (3 to 4.5 meters) of beachfront a year, Hallac said. 'And so every year, 10 to 15 feet of that white sandy beach is gone,' Hallac said. 'And then the dunes and then the back-dune area. And then all of a sudden, the foreshore, that area between low water and high water, is right up next to somebody's backyard. And then the erosion continues.' 'Like a toothpick in wet sand' The ocean attacks the houses by the wooden pilings that provide their foundation and keep them above the water. The supports could be 15 feet (4.5 meters) deep. But the surf slowly takes away the sand that is packed around them. 'It's like a toothpick in wet sand or even a beach umbrella,' Hallac said. 'The deeper you put it, the more likely it is to stand up straight and resist leaning over. But if you only put it down a few inches, it doesn't take much wind for that umbrella to start leaning. And it starts to tip over.' A single home collapse can shed debris up to 15 miles (25 kilometers) along the coast, according to a report from a group of federal, state and local officials who are studying threatened oceanfront structures in North Carolina. Collapses can injure beachgoers and lead to potential contamination from septic tanks, among other environmental concerns. The report noted that 750 of nearly 8,800 oceanfront structures in North Carolina are considered at risk from erosion. There are solutions but they are expensive Among the possible solutions is hauling dredged sand to eroding beaches, something that is already being done in other communities on the Outer Banks and East Coast. But it could cost $40 million or more in Rodanthe, posing a major financial challenge for its small tax base Other ideas include buying out threatened properties, moving or demolishing them. But those options are also very expensive. And funding is limited. Braxton Davis, executive director of the North Carolina Coastal Federation, a nonprofit, said the problem isn't limited to Rodanthe or even to North Carolina. He pointed to erosion issues along California's coast, the Great Lakes and some of the nation's rivers. 'This is a national issue,' Davis said, adding that sea levels are rising and 'the situation is only going to become worse.'
Daily Mail
8 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Hurricane Erin may hit the UK over Bank Holiday
Britain faces a 'big change to more unsettled weather' next week as the remnants of Hurricane Erin are set to bring wet and windy conditions at the end of summer. Meteorologists are monitoring how the system could strengthen the jet stream and impact UK weather after the bank holiday weekend as it sweeps across the Atlantic. The Met Office said Erin underwent a 'remarkable and very fast transition' from a tropical storm to a 160mph Category 5 'monster' in 24 hours last weekend. This morning it was a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of about 100mph, located about 500 miles off the Outer Banks islands of North Carolina . The system is forecast to remain out in the ocean, before the remnants could be seen in Britain by late Sunday or early Monday - bringing big waves to coastal areas. Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern said it 'does look a little bit more likely that autumn will make an early appearance' at some point next week, with an 'increased likelihood of low pressure, showers, spells of rain and increased wind as well'. Wet conditions in the final week of summer would end a period of dry weather for much of the country, with the UK on track for one of its hottest summers on record. But further warm and settled weather will continue into the bank holiday weekend, with highs of between 22C and 24C every day in London until at least next Tuesday. The Met Office expects high pressure will continue to dominate for the rest of this week, although showers are possible in western areas at the end of the weekend. Mr McGivern said Erin underwent a 'remarkable and very fast transition from a tropical storm to a Category 5 monster in just 24 hours at the start of the weekend.' He said the storm is expected to move north and then curve north-eastwards into the North Atlantic over the next few days and into the weekend. By Sunday it will have technically become an ex-hurricane, and Mr McGivern clarified that 'no hurricane could hit the UK or will hit the UK in the near future'. He said this was 'because the seas surrounding the UK are simply not warm enough -they're some 10 degrees lower than you'd expect to sustain an actual hurricane'. Looking at how Erin will affect the UK's weather, Mr McGivern continued: 'It could bring its remnants to the UK at some point, but it could well stay away. 'However, the more important question is actually how will it strengthen the jet stream and how will that jet stream bring us other lows that are not necessarily Erin? 'Either way, whether or not it hits us as an ex-hurricane, it's still likely to bring us a big change to more unsettled weather for next week.' He added that there were many variables involved, such as 'how an ex-hurricane is going to interact with a jet stream and how the jet stream is going interact with an ex-hurricane'. Mr McGivern said: 'What looks most likely is that that ex-hurricane fuels the jet stream. The jet stream brings a big change to the UK's weather into next week, brings an increased likelihood of low pressure, showers, spells of rain and increased wind. 'Of course, we need the rain, but it might not be welcome for people who want to enjoy the last week of the summer holidays. It does look a little bit more likely that autumn will make an early appearance.' The summer has been marked by persistent warm temperatures even outside the four heatwaves which have hit the country, with June and July both seeing well above-average conditions. With two weeks to go until the end of the meteorological summer, conditions could still shift. But the season's overall warmth and consistently above-average temperatures mean it could rank among the UK's warmest in records dating back to 1884. Met Office meteorologist Marco Petagna said: 'Any remnants of the hurricane aren't expected to have an impact on the UK until early next week, there's uncertainty how it will play out. 'From late on Sunday the uncertainty starts to kick in. There's a risk of some rain developing, a potential that then things will turn increasingly unsettled. 'It's likely becoming more unsettled early to middle part of next week, at this stage we can't be too firm on the details.' Provisional figures from the Met Office show that the UK's average temperature from June 1 to August 17 stands at 16.2C, some 1.6C above the average temperature. In North Carolina, evacuations have been ordered along the barrier islands of the Outer Banks where a storm surge from Erin could swamp roads with waves of 15ft.
Daily Mail
11 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Hurricane Erin could batter Britain: Remnants of 160mph storm may hit the UK over Bank Holiday after powering across the Atlantic
Britain faces a 'big change to more unsettled weather' next week as the remnants of Hurricane Erin are set to bring wet and windy conditions at the end of summer. Meteorologists are monitoring how the system could strengthen the jet stream and impact UK weather after the bank holiday weekend as it sweeps across the Atlantic. The Met Office said Erin underwent a 'remarkable and very fast transition' from a tropical storm to a 160mph Category 5 'monster' in 24 hours last weekend. This morning it was a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of about 100mph, located about 500 miles off the Outer Banks islands of North Carolina. The system is forecast to remain out in the ocean, before the remnants could be seen in Britain by late Sunday or early Monday - bringing big waves to coastal areas. Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern said it 'does look a little bit more likely that autumn will make an early appearance' at some point next week, with an 'increased likelihood of low pressure, showers, spells of rain and increased wind as well'. Wet conditions in the final week of summer would end a period of dry weather for much of the country, with the UK on track for one of its hottest summers on record. But further warm and settled weather will continue into the bank holiday weekend, with highs of between 22C and 24C every day in London until at least next Tuesday. The Met Office expects high pressure will continue to dominate for the rest of this week, although showers are possible in western areas at the end of the weekend. Mr McGivern said Erin underwent a 'remarkable and very fast transition from a tropical storm to a Category 5 monster in just 24 hours at the start of the weekend.' He said the storm is expected to move north and then curve north-eastwards into the North Atlantic over the next few days and into the weekend. By Sunday it will have technically become an ex-hurricane, and Mr McGivern clarified that 'no hurricane could hit the UK or will hit the UK in the near future'. He said this was 'because the seas surrounding the UK are simply not warm enough -they're some 10 degrees lower than you'd expect to sustain an actual hurricane'. Looking at how Erin will affect the UK's weather, Mr McGivern continued: 'It could bring its remnants to the UK at some point, but it could well stay away. 'However, the more important question is actually how will it strengthen the jet stream and how will that jet stream bring us other lows that are not necessarily Erin? 'Either way, whether or not it hits us as an ex-hurricane, it's still likely to bring us a big change to more unsettled weather for next week.' Reading Festival begin to arrive for early bird camping on a grey and overcast morning today Reading festivalgoers arrive with their camping equipment at the site in Berkshire today He added that there were many variables involved, such as 'how an ex-hurricane is going to interact with a jet stream and how the jet stream is going interact with an ex-hurricane'. Mr McGivern said: 'What looks most likely is that that ex-hurricane fuels the jet stream. The jet stream brings a big change to the UK's weather into next week, brings an increased likelihood of low pressure, showers, spells of rain and increased wind. 'Of course, we need the rain, but it might not be welcome for people who want to enjoy the last week of the summer holidays. It does look a little bit more likely that autumn will make an early appearance.' The summer has been marked by persistent warm temperatures even outside the four heatwaves which have hit the country, with June and July both seeing well above-average conditions. With two weeks to go until the end of the meteorological summer, conditions could still shift. But the season's overall warmth and consistently above-average temperatures mean it could rank among the UK's warmest in records dating back to 1884. Met Office meteorologist Marco Petagna said: 'Any remnants of the hurricane aren't expected to have an impact on the UK until early next week, there's uncertainty how it will play out. 'From late on Sunday the uncertainty starts to kick in. There's a risk of some rain developing, a potential that then things will turn increasingly unsettled. 'It's likely becoming more unsettled early to middle part of next week, at this stage we can't be too firm on the details.' Provisional figures from the Met Office show that the UK's average temperature from June 1 to August 17 stands at 16.2C, some 1.6C above the average temperature. In North Carolina, evacuations have been ordered along the barrier islands of the Outer Banks where a storm surge from Erin could swamp roads with waves of 15ft. New York City closed its beaches to swimming today, while several New Jersey beaches also will be temporarily off-limits. Some towns in Delaware have cut off ocean access and Nantucket Island in Massachusetts could see waves of 10ft. Yesterday, Erin lashed the Turks and Caicos Islands, where government services were suspended and residents were ordered to stay home, along with parts of the Bahamas before its expected turn toward Bermuda.
