Hoary marmot in Denali National Park, Alaska

© Perry de Graaf/Minden Picture

It's Groundhog Day, again. Groundhog Day arrives—beyond a shadow of a doubt

Do you think this hoary marmot in Alaska’s Denali National Park is wondering whether its relative, Punxsutawney Phil, saw his shadow today? Groundhog Day is an American tradition that originated among the Pennsylvania Dutch, but groundhogs aren’t the only animals believed to predict the weather. It’s said you can predict the severity of an upcoming winter by examining the stripes on a woolly bear caterpillar’s back. And in Germany, folks once looked to the badger to forecast the coming of spring. But no furry prognosticator of the weather has gained as much fame as Punxsutawney Phil. Perhaps we have Bill Murray to thank for that? (Be right back, got to cue up Murray’s film ‘Groundhog Day.’) Say, do you ever have déjà vu? Wait, did we just ask you that?