Groundhog Day

Groundhog Day derives from the Pennsylvania Dutch superstition that if a groundhog emerges from its burrow on this day and sees its shadow, it will retreat to its den and winter will go on for six more weeks; if it does not see its shadow, spring will arrive early. In 2024, an early spring was predicted.

The first mention Yoder has found of groundhogs predicting the weather on February 2 is in a diary entry for that day in 1840, written by a Welsh-American storekeeper in Pennsylvania: Today the Germans say the groundhog comes out of his winter quarters and if he sees his shadow he returns in and remains there 40 days.

• • Groundhogs are the largest species in the squirrel family.

  • Other names for groundhogs include woodchucks, whistle-pigs, and land-beavers.

  • Groundhogs are skilled climbers and swimmers, which helps them to escape less-skilled predators.

  • Groundhog burrows are so complex that each has its own "bathroom" chamber.

  •  108 continued winters and only 21 early springs as of 2024.