Could this year’s winter be colder? Lynnfield resident and photographer James Macdonald thought so when he saw that a rabbit’s color had begun changing in October.
“I believe this is a sure sign that we will be having more snow and colder temperatures this winter season,” Macdonald wrote on Facebook.
A photography and wildlife enthusiast, Macdonald read in this year’s Farmers’ Almanac that this year’s winter will bring more snow and cold weather to Massachusetts. He believes that animals and creatures in the area can give signs of the approaching weather.
In the past, these signs were given by migrating birds,” Macdonald said. “So when you see them in the spring, you know that summers are on the way, and then when they return again in the fall, they leave winter behind. So there’s different creatures and animals in nature that you can read for the signs of what’s going on nature-wise.”
Macdonald said that last year, the state’s winter had milder temperatures and less snow than previous years.
“Two years ago, when Pillings Pond froze, there were six different skating rinks out on the pond,” he said. “Last year, the pond never fully froze. There was ice for a short span of several days, but only maybe 15 feet to 20 feet from the shoreline, but there weren’t any skating rinks.”
Macdonald’s love for photography comes from his grandparents. Macdonald’s grandfather was passionate about the art, and his grandmother realized early on that her grandson was interested in photography as well. She wanted him to have her husband’s camera and slides.
“I looked at it and it was an old-fashioned camera and there were tons of slides,” Macdonald said. “I ended up looking at my grandparents’ honeymoon in New York in the Roaring ’20s. And I could see them standing on the streets of New York. And I think that over time, a photograph becomes more valuable because you originally take pictures of people but things change, more time goes further, and the memory becomes more precious.”
