BROOKHAVEN — Severe weather has returned with gray skies and the smell of rain in the air. Wind was calm and out of the south this morning but should start to pick up the further the day moves along.

There is a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms today with a south wind blowing around 5 to 15 miles per hour and gusts reaching as high as 25 mph. Rainfall amounts could equal a little less than a tenth of an inch but higher amounts are possible in the thunderstorms.

Tonight will have a 40 percent chance of showers and a low of 64. The wind will continue to blow out of a south at 10 to 15 mph with gusts as high as 30 mph.

NWS Jackson forecasts northwest Lincoln County to face a marginal risk of severe storms this evening. Isolated severe storms are possible and could produce wind gusts up to 60 mph. Hail could fall up to the size of a quarter and tornadoes could also form. The timing of this storm will be from around midnight until 4 a.m. Thursday morning.

Severe weather is expected to threaten the area again Thursday morning at about 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Surrounding areas are at risk of damaging winds up to 60 mph, quarter sized hail and possible tornadoes. Stay weather alert.

Outdoor outlook

If you are a habitat manager hoping to get some dormant season burning in before this spring there is calm weather up ahead. Sunday is forecast to be sunny with winds as low as 5 mph and up to 10 mph. Saturday will have a similar forecasted winds but expect frost. Rain is forecast to return Tuesday. Prescribed fire can be a good way to effectively help the turkey population as it encourages new growth of forbes and browse and providing cover for nesting areas. Deer benefit from prescribed burning too.

Fishing reports on the MDWFP website have not made a return yet but are forecasted too. Water temperatures should be warming up as the spring time approaches. Saturday could be a good day to hit the water with the major feeding time at 9:37 a.m. followed by a minor feeding time at 3:20 p.m.

Sunrise will be at 6:43 a.m. Thursday and sunset will be at 5:49 p.m. We will be at a 12 hours of daylight by February 28. Springtime is getting closer and so is the breeding season and hunting season for turkeys. According to an article written by MDWFP turkey program coordinator Adam Butler, turkeys detect the growing amount of day light.

“Increased daylight stimulates receptors in the hen’s eyes. This causes a response from her endocrine system and begins the production of certain hormones that signal her body that the breeding season is near,” Butler wrote. “Many physiological changes must occur for the hen’s body to be ready for egg production. Behavioral differences will take place as well. Sometime in early March, a great deal of shuffling will occur within the local turkey population, and the hen and most of her winter flock will suddenly part ways.”