Local groundhogs fail to see shadows, forecasting early spring in the Poconos

Two Pocono groundhogs, in agreement with Punxsutawney Phil, forecast an early spring Friday morning after failing to see their shadows.

At the Pocono Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center, Sweet Potato, one of the groundhogs, did not see her shadow at the center's 10 a.m. Groundhog Day event.

The other groundhog, Baked Potato, was a little too fussy to participate, but Education Director Kathy Uhler reported that neither groundhog saw its shadow earlier in the morning.

At the start of the event inside the clinic, Uhler explained the circumstances that led to Baked Potato's and Sweet Potato's Pocono stay this winter.

“We take care of baby groundhogs all the time, but they’re usually born and come in in May and June. These guys came in in August, so it was too late to release them this year,” Uhler said. “So, that’s why they over-wintered with us, which is why (it’s the) first time we’re ever doing a Groundhog Day thing because we never have groundhogs in the wintertime.”

Look out, Punxsutawney Phil! Pocono Wildlife houses 2 groundhogs who will look for shadows

According to Uhler, Groundhog Day originated from the Pennsylvania-Dutch; in Germany, they have the same tradition, except badgers are used to check for their shadow.

When Germans migrated to Pennsylvania, there were no native badgers in the area, so they instead used groundhogs due to their similarities (both live underground and both hibernate).

“They’re very cute, and they can be problems for some people, you’ve all heard that groundhogs can present problems for farmers and for gardeners,” Uhler said. “They dig holes, which is what they do; the bad part about that is if you have livestock and they put their foot in there, very bad things can happen. If you’re a gardener, they will get in your garden and eat your garden.

“The good part about groundhogs is that they dig deep burrows, and other animals who live in burrows but can’t dig them now have a place to live, so they’re really nice to have in the environment for helping other animals out,” Uhler said. “There isn’t really any harm they do in the wild, they’re just a part of nature and one of the bigger members of the rodent family, squirrel family. This is a ground squirrel.”

After a while Friday, everyone was taken outside so that staff could take Baked Potato and Sweet Potato out of their cage.

Uhler was able to sweep up Sweet Potato with no fuss, but when clinic Manager Kathryn “Kat” Schuster tried to pick up Baked Potato, the groundhog let out a little squeak.

“Are you going to be grumpy?” Schuster asked. After a few more attempts, Sweet Potato got the spotlight alone. Placed on the table, Sweet Potato gave no indication she saw her shadow, agreeing with her colleague in Punxsutawney.

On Groundhog Day, if the groundhog does not see its shadow, it means that there will be an early spring; or, as Uhler put it, the rest of winter could be more, springlike, as winter does not end until March 21 no matter a groundhog's forecast.

Nine people attended the 10 a.m. event. Executive Director Janine Tancredi said the center is, “Trying to get the community involved a little bit more, so that they’re familiar with our native species and how groundhogs are beneficial. A lot of people look at them as destructive and they carry a lot of benefits to having them in your yard.”

“I really enjoyed it, it was very educational, and it was exciting to be that close to groundhogs,” attendee Laura Mason-Caiazzo said.

“It was cool,” Marge Derhart said. “It was neat, very interesting, and the groundhogs are cute.”

The idea of an early spring also was a hit.

“I’m all for it,” Mason-Caiazzo said. “I watched Punxsutawney Phil on the Weather Channel this morning, and I’m ready for spring to be here.”

“I am looking forward to an early spring, and from what I’ve heard, other groundhogs agree,” Tancredi said. “So, we’re looking forward to an early spring, that means early bunnies, early squirrels.”

Shadow or no? Every Groundhog Day result since 1886

Max Augugliaro is the public safety and government watchdog reporter at the Pocono Record. Reach him at MAugugliaro@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Pocono Record: Pocono groundhogs agree with Punxsutawney Phil, early spring coming