Shawna Clark’s hair was tied back on Tuesday. She wore denim shorts and an orange Gators T-shirt. Small beads of sweat slid down her forehead.
It was 77 degrees Fahrenheit.
”It’s not as cute as wearing winter clothes,” said the 19-year-old applied physiology and kinesiology sophomore. “But I guess I’d rather be warm than freezing.”
According to the National Climatic Data Center, last year was the hottest on record.
The average temperature of 2012 was 55.3 degrees Fahrenheit — 3.2 degrees above last century’s average and one degree higher than 1998, the hottest previously recorded year.
WRUF Chief Meteorologist Jeff Huffman said although it was the hottest year nationwide, rainfall — which was above normal for the year — was the bigger factor within Gainesville.
He attributed the higher rainfall to tropical storms Beryl and Debby and said the extra precipitation followed a two-year area drought.
Though Huffman said the current weather in Alachua County is unusual for the season, he warned it may change soon.
“The coldest nights of the winter could still be ahead of us,” he said.
Roxanne Connelly, an associate professor of medical entomology, said the higher temperatures have had an effect on the local mosquito population, which breeds in the heat.
She said summer is the peak season for mosquitoes, and temperature drops during winter normally knock out most of the North Central Florida population.
“Typically, in winter months and even early spring, the activity you’re seeing in Alachua County would be much more reduced if temperatures were lower,” she said.
