Wiarton Willie predicts early spring this year

By Rhea Munroe

Here’s a little bit of trivia for you. Why are groundhogs the poster animal for an early or late spring?

According to a 2010 article in the Huffington Post, the tradition of Groundhog Day can be traced back thousands of years when people in ancient Europe used badgers or sacred bears to help them figure out how long winter would last.

In 1887, the tradition came here to North America, mainly in the Pennsylvania area. With the transition it made overseas, the animal transformed into the groundhog.  And by the time it came up to Canada in 1956 it was known as Groundhog Day.

Sue Meech, director of Sandy Pines Wildlife centre in Napanee, said “groundhogs generally hibernate from November until April when the weather gets warmer.”

For Wiarton Willie, or any other famous groundhog, Feb. 2 marks the end of their hibernation, unless they see their shadow, of course.

Even though groundhogs are hibernators, they do have times when they wake during their five-month sleep, which is usually for procreation and food.

“They have to pack on the pounds for winter because of hibernation,” said Meech.

By the time they are done hibernating, groundhogs emerge much thinner than they were before, but just as strong. They have to eat a lot of food before hibernating so that they lose the fat while they hibernate and not their muscle mass.

Groundhogs are also well known as pests to farmers or gardeners who have to deal with them.

“They are vegetarians,” said Meech, “They eat clover, dandelion, grass, and grains” which, along with their love of digging, is one of the reasons farmers and gardeners do their best to keep them away.

But Meech has a different standing on groundhogs than most people,

“I consider humans to be pests, there are too many of us” she said, referring to the idea that humans will settle on or steal land that may already be property to other animals.

It’s widely known that groundhogs burrow for hibernation in the winter, but they also do burrow during the warmer months as well.

“They burrow for a home to live in. For safety from foxes, coyotes, and birds of prey. They’re on the menu so they need a hiding spot,” said Meech. The burrows of groundhogs have plenty of entrances and exits to allow for them a safe and sneaky escape from predators.

Now that you know a little bit about the animal, let’s get back to Groundhog Day. In the last 20 years, Wiarton Willie has been estimated to be correct about 55% of the time.

This morning, Wiarton Willie predicted an early spring. Let’s see if he’s right this year.