March 2013 Tornadoes: Fewest in Decades

Jon Erdman Published: Apr 3, 2013, 2:48 PM EDT weather.com

http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-central/march-tornadoes-fewest-20130330

The persistent, stubborn March cold in the Plains, South and East has had at least one benefit.
March 2013 was one of the least tornadic Marches in the U.S. in decades.
In preliminary data through March 31, only 17 tornadoes have been tallied across the nation in March 2013, according to Severe Weather Expert, Dr. Greg Forbes (Facebook | Twitter).  

If this preliminary total holds up, this would be the lowest March U.S. tornado count in 35 years, since only 17 tornadoes were counted in March 1978.  The last March with a lower U.S. tornado tally was 1969, with only 8 U.S. tornadoes.
March 2012 couldn't have been more different, nearly doubling the monthly average with 154 tornadoes, punctuated by the Mar. 2-3 outbreak, heavily damaging the towns of W. Liberty, Ky. and Henryville, Ind., among others.
(MORE:  Mar. 2-3, 2012 outbreak recap)
This low count in March 2013 is particularly impressive given today's technology, such as Doppler radar, smartphones and social media, as well as a more expansive spotter network.
Weak tornadoes are much less likely to go undetected today compared to past years. This contributes to rising tornado counts compared to past decades, a concept called "tornado inflation".
Incidentally, a quiet March often doesn't portend a quiet April or May.
Only 75 March tornadoes, slightly below the 10-year average of 98 tornadoes, touched down in March 2011.  Then, all hell broke loose in April 2011, with a monthly record 758 U.S. tornadoes