Happy Groundhog Day! In honor of our furry predictive friend, here are 10 facts about groundhogs, their holiday and even the movie!
1. Groundhog Day was adopted in the U.S. in 1887. Clymer H. Freas was the editor of the local paper Punxsutawney Spirit at the time, and he began promoting the town’s groundhog as the official “Groundhog Day meteorologist.”
2. The groundhog who predicts on this famous day is named Punxsutawney Phil. The legendary groundhog has reportedly been making predictions for over 125 years, with this year’s edition marking his 129th appearance. This is remarkable seeing as the average lifespan of a groundhog is usually less than six years.
4. Groundhogs are real hard sleepers. These furry mammals are known as “true hibernators.” During their dormant state, their body temperature and heart rate fall dramatically. This occurs from late fall until late winter or early spring. Animals that are true hibernators can reduce their body temp below 20 degrees Celsius, whereas other hibernators like bears, only drop their body temp to 30 degrees Celsius.
5. Punxsutawney Phil delivers his annual prediction in “groundhogese.” This is then translated by the Inner Circle president of the Groundhog Club. It’s kind of a big deal.
7. Once the Groundhog Day movie was released, tens of thousands of people began to flock to Punxsutawney, Penn. to see the legendary groundhog give his forecast in person.
8. Pennsylvania isn’t the only state where Groundhog Day is highly celebrated. In Alaska, the festival is observed as “Marmot Day,” due to the scarcity of groundhogs there.
10. According to Stormfax, Punxsutawney Phil is only 39 percent correct on his predictions. Don’t be too bummed that he announced six more weeks of winter today because there’s still a chance spring will be here soon.