Weather myths: Can crickets reveal the temperature?

With spring here the chirping of crickets will soon reappear in our gardens and outdoor spaces, did you know you could use their chirps to work out the temperature?

Yes, as strange as it sounds there is a way of using the frequency of the chirps to calculate how warm it is in your area.

The relationship was first discovered by Margarette W. Brooks in 1881 but is known as Dolbear’s Law after Amos Dolbear who published the findings in 1897.

It’s a simple measure to carry out. Simply count the number of chirps in 25 seconds, divide that number by three, and add four to find the temperature in Celsius. Now, if you are not familiar with Celsius, you must now convert it to Fahrenheit.

Take the number in celsius multiply it by 1.8 and add 32. This will give you the temperatures in Fahrenheit. PHEW! you must be good at math!

This doesn’t work as accurately with field crickets as their chirping is influenced by other factors but will still provide a rough temperature.

So, as the crickets begin to reappear and their chirps once again flow through the air try this trick yourself.