Thursday Thirteen 235: Groundhog Day

Happy Groundhog Day!

On this date last year, we were in the midst of a blizzard that dumped nearly 20 inches of snow across Southern Wisconsin. This year? Complete 180. Not only is there no snow, but we’ve had temps up to 50 degrees this week. 50—in January! It feels more like early April than February. So, chances are pretty good that rodent out in Sun Prairie is going to see his little shadow, and make us pay for all this unusually warm winter weather. In honor of it being Groundhog Day, here are a few facts about these famed weather prognosticators.

[ETA: Well, I'll be... Jimmy did not see his shadow this morning. Looks like we may get an "early" spring afterall.]


1. Groundhogs are the largest member of the squirrel family, weighing in at about 13 pounds, with the brain the size of a cashew. They are brown or reddish-brown in color, with black feet.

2. Also known as woodchucks or marmots, the average lifespan of a groundhog is 6-8 years in the wild, and up to 10 in captivity. They are naturally aggressive and do not make good pets. It takes a lot of training and patience to "tame" them.

3. Groundhogs are found in North America, primarily the northern and eastern United States, but also into Canada and Alaska. You will not find them in desert regions of the southwest, as they prefer areas where woods and fields abut.

4. Though ground dwellers, groundhogs can climb trees, and are fairly good swimmers.

5. Groundhogs will eat grass, fruits, vegetables and even tree bark. They can easily decimate an entire garden, putting on fat to prepare for the coming winter.

6. At the first sign of frost, groundhogs retreat to their burrows and hibernate until spring. During hibernation, the heart rate drops and body temperature isn’t much warmer than the temp of the burrow, about 40F.

7. The groundhog will lose half its body weight while hibernating (don’t you wish you could lose weight while sleeping?!).

8. In the spring, females will give birth to a littler of about six kits (or cubs), which stay with mom for several months.

9. February 2 is not only Groundhog Day, but also the Christian feast day, Candlemas. There is a saying associated with the day:

If Candlemas be fair and bright,
Come, Winter, have another flight;
If Candlemas brings clouds and rain,
Go Winter, and come not again.

Sounds a bit familiar, yes?


10. The most famous groundhog is Punxsutawney Phil, who made his first prediction in 1886. He has a 39% rate of accuracy. Wisconsin’s Jimmy the Groundhog is reported to have an accuracy rate of 80%. Temperatures must be above freezing for seven consecutive days for a prediction of an early spring.

11. Wisconsin’s groundhog history is almost as old as Pennsylvania’s. Early journal entries from local farmers note observations of area groundhogs as far back as 1886, though an “official” Groundhog Day celebration did not begin until 1948, when Wisconsin celebrated its 100th anniversary.

12. In February1952, there was a congressional feud between the delegates from PA and WI over Groundhog Day that made national headlines. Later that year, Sun Prairie, WI was proclaimed “Groundhog Capitol of the World.”

13. The 1993 movie Groundhog Day stars Bill Murray, a weatherman who is forced to relive the same day over and over until he can become less selfish and learn to be a better person. Although set in Punxsutawney, PA, most of the movie was actually filmed in Woodstock, Ill.





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