Monday, July 31, 2023

A mud dauber wasp nest revealed

Morning Observation:

This morning in North Hero at 6:50AM it’s currently 65 degrees under partly cloudy skies. Winds are out of the southwest at 2-4 mph. Relative humidity is 80%, dewpoint 59, barometric pressure 29.86”. Yesterday’s high was 72, and yesterday’s low was 57. The overnight low got down to 63.

This morning in Huntington it’s currently 56 degrees under partly cloudy skies. Winds are calm. Relative humidity is 98%, dewpoint 55, barometric pressure 29.90”. Yesterday’s high was 76, and yesterday’s low was 55. The overnight low got down to 54.

Forecast Discussion:

After a dry start to the day, we’ll see chances for showers increasing by midday as a cold front drops through the region bringing scattered showers and afternoon thunderstorms. Any storms should be below severe levels, but brief heavy rains and frequent lightning may accompany the storms so be aware if you’re planning outdoor activities. Highs today will be below average, in the upper 60s to low 70s. High pressure will build in for the middle of the week bringing dry conditions with temperatures continuing to be 5-7 degrees below normal. Chances for showers will increase later on Thursday as low pressure skirts to our north lifting a warm from through the region Thursday afternoon/evening. Temperatures and humidity levels will begin to creep up as well as a warmer, moisture airmass moves in on a southerly airflow. We’ll see widespread showers on Friday with afternoon thunderstorms likely. At this point the weekend is looking mostly dry with the outside chance of some showers on Saturday.

3-Day Forecast:

We’ll see mostly cloudy skies today with scattered showers and thunderstorms this afternoon. Highs will be near 72 southwest winds 5-9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60% with rainfall amounts between 0.10″-0.25″ with higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Tonight should be mostly cloudy with scattered showers and thunderstorms before 9:00PM. Lows will be around 55 with northwest wind 5-10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30% with rainfall amounts of less than 0.10″.

Tuesday should be mostly sunny with a high near 70 and northwest winds 5-10 mph. Tuesday night should be mostly clear with a low around 49 in Huntington and 54 in North Hero with northwest winds 5-8 mph becoming southwesterly in the evening.

Wednesday should be sunny with a high near 73 and northwest winds 3-5 mph. Wednesday night should be partly cloudy with a low around 52 in Huntington and 60 in North Hero with south winds 5-9 mph.

Almanac:

Last year on this date in Huntington we had a high of 82 and a low of 54.
Last year in North Hero we had a high of 82 and a low of 66.

Burlington averages for this date are a low of 63 and a high of 82.
The record low was 42 in 1964.
The record high was 96 in 1999 (we had a high of 92 in Huntington).

The Lake Champlain lake level in Burlington is 98.58′.
The water temperature is 72˚.
Last year’s lake level was at 94.91′.

Sky Notes:

Sunrise: 5:37AM
Sunset: 8:18PM
Length of day: 14:40:08
Today will be 2:17 shorter than yesterday.

The Moon is waxing gibbous, 13 days old with 96% illumination.
Moonrise: 8:13PM
Moonset: 3:32AM

About Today’s Photo:

Here’s something that will interest the naturalists among you. I was opening up the bimini on our boat yesterday afternoon and came across several mud dauber wasp nests that had been made in the canvas fabric. As the name implies, these wasps build their cell-structured nests out of mud, lay an egg in each cell, and then stuff the cell with spiders that they have stunned. As the larvae grow, they eat the spiders. You can clearly see 3 cells in the photo with 3 larvae and accompanying spiders. The one in the middle has quite the head-start! Unfortunately I had to destroy this nest, but I tried to save the others that I managed to remove intact, putting them ashore in the hope that they’d hatch successfully.

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