Volume 13 Number 2   FEBRUARY 2000

Above average temperatures once again dominated during the month, continuing the warm spell that has gripped the state since the start of the New Year. February 2000 is in the record books as the warmest February ever in Del Rio and San Angelo, and the second warmest ever in Brownsville. Twenty record temperatures were set, and 5 more were tied. One record of note occurred when San Antonio set a new record for the highest minimum temperature on the 29^th, which is sure to be untouched for at least four years. Overall temperature departures ranged from 4.4ºF at Wichita Falls to 9.4ºF above normal in Dallas. Rainfall amounts for the state were below normal for most stations, with the exception of Dallas/Fort Worth, Del Rio, San Antonio, Waco, and Wichita Falls. Lubbock still has yet to see precipitation for the year.

The month began with cool temperatures and rainy conditions for much of the state. A warm front associated with a low pressure system in northern Mexico brought much needed rain to southern portions of Texas on the 1^st and 2^nd. Cool temperatures were reinforced by a cold front that moved through the state on the 4^th. Temperatures then began to creep up as high pressure moved in after the front. With a few exceptions, mild temperatures dominated the rest of the month.

On the 11^th, a low pressure system which formed over Oklahoma joined an existing front and moved through Texas, bringing cooler temperatures to the Panhandle and the Red River area. Another cool front from the West Coast arrived on the 12^th, continuing the cool temperatures. However, warm temperatures returned as warm air from the south pushed it's way into much of the state.

The end of February saw a flurry of severe weather in the central and northwestern parts of Texas. A squall line formed in West Texas on the afternoon of the 22^nd along a cool front associated with a low pressure system in the Plains. These storms swept across the state that evening and into the early morning of the 23^rd. There were two reports of tornadoes in Lampasas and Killeen, and hail up to 1.75 inches in diameter fell in Clyde and Uvalde. Severe weather continued through the 26^th as another Pacific cool front moved eastward through Texas. On the 25^th, massive football-shaped hail 3.5 inches in diameter and 5 inches in length fell in Garland. However, the storms would subside as fair weather returned to end the month.
 
 

Kerry Meyer (Undergraduate Assistant)

Rick Scott (Graduate Assistant)
 
 

* Complete temperature data were unavailable. Temperatures are rounded to the nearest whole degree.

*HDD - Heating degree-day: Refer to the Monthly Average chart for a definition T = Trace (<0.005")

*CDD - Cooling degree-day: Refer to the Monthly Average chart for a definition M: Information not available.
 
 

As drought conditions persisted into February, Texas cattle producers have been faced with feeding challenges. Low quality forage forces producers to purchase supplemental feed or ship cattle elsewhere. Even the supplemental feeding can be a problem, as insufficient drinking water coupled with low protein forage substitutes can result in rumen impaction. This is according to Dr. Dennis Herd, Extension beef cattle specialist at Texas A&M University, who also stated that "there has not been enough rain to fill stock tanks and ensure crop for the season.

By the end of the 3^rd week of February, producers were being forced to reduce stocking rates. This comes at a time when Texas cattle producers were trying to rebuild herds depleted from the 1996 drought, said district Extension director Scott Durham of San Angelo. Beef cow numbers dropped by 100,000 while lamb numbers dropped by 150,000 in 1999. With limited forage, dry tanks, and the fact that little hay was produced to begin with, herd reductions help cope with increased costs of hauling water and supplemental feeding. District Extension director Galen Chandler of Vernon said producers were also selling older cows to take advantage of relative high cattle prices. In North Texas, district Extension director Randy Upshaw of Dallas said that with a ten inch rainfall deficit, "soil moisture is becoming critically low." He said that although the livestock were in fair condition, hay was increasing in price and ponds were low or dry.

The state's sheep and Angora goat populations were also suffering, according to the Texas Agricultural Extension Service. Lack of forage was the worst problem, and the lack of food and water affects the normal reproductive cycles of sheep and goats, reported Ed Huston, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station animal nutritionist in San Angelo. He expected problems this month and into March with birthing and nursing. Although Texas leads the nation in sheep and Angora goat numbers, breeding sheep and lambs were down 10% from 1999, and Angora goats were down 30%.

As the month ended, turfgrass was greening up across the state despite the ongoing drought. Extension turfgrass specialist Dr. James McAfee of Dallas said turfgrass had done very well, with Bermuda grass showing up early in the Dallas area. Texas A&M University agricultural economist Dr. Dennis Lard of College Station said the turfgrass industry contributed over $6 billion each year to the state's economy, with single family household turfgrass maintenance contributing almost half of that total.

Rick Scott

Office of the State Climatologist
 
 
 
 

Material obtained from:

TAMU Extension Crop, Livestock and Weather reports
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Monthly Weather Outlook for March 2000

From the Climate Prediction Center, the 30-day outlook for the month of March indicates 10-20% below the normal 33% probability of below-normal precipitation for most of South Texas and Central Texas. This negative anomaly changes gradually to a 5-10% lower than usual chance of below-normal precipitation in the Trans-Pecos, the Panhandle, and East Texas.

South and east of a line from Big Bend through Dallas, climatologists are predicting a 10-20% greater than usual probability of above-normal temperatures. North and west of this line the chances of above-normal temperatures decrease gradually to a 0-5% probability of above-normal tempertures in the northern Panhandle.

Past Weather Events in March

March 23, 1909: Tornado. Slidell, Wise County; 11 killed, 10 injured; damage $30,000.

March 30, 1933: Tornado. Angelina, Nacogdoches and San Augustine Counties; 10 killed, 56 injured; damage $200,000.

March 13, 1953: Tornado. Jud and O'Brien, Haskell County; and Knox City, Knox County; 17 killed, 25 injured; damage $600,000.

March-May, 1998: According to the Climate Prediction Center, this three-month period ranks as the seventh driest for a region including Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. May 1998 has been ranked as both the warmest and the driest May that this region has ever seen.
 
 
 
 

Dr. John Nielsen-Gammon (State Climatologist)

Rick Scott (Graduate Assistant)

Darcy Dittman (Undergraduate Assistant)

Kerry Meyer (Undergraduate Assistant)