Why do groundhogs become weather experts for a day?
Every Feb. 2, thousands of winter-weary folk look to groundhogs to see whether an early spring is on the horizon.
It's a tradition historians trace back to European agricultural life, marking the midpoint between the winter solstice and the spring equinox.
It was German settlers in Gobbler's Knob, Pennsylvania, that first put Groundhog Day on the map.
Since then, tens of thousands of people have made an annual pilgrimage to see if the world's most famous groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, sees his shadow or not.
As the legend goes, if the groundhog sees its shadow, it will return to its burrow for another six weeks of winter weather.
If it doesn't, an early spring is coming.
There are weather-predicting groundhogs in at least 28 U.S. States and Canadian provinces. But how accurate are they?
Lakehead University Professor Michael Rennie and his students crunched the numbers and published what is believed to be the most comprehensive evaluation of groundhog spring predictions to date.
"We collected data from as many groundhogs as had information available," Rennie said. "We made sure we were looking at actual groundhogs and not just a guy with a puppet. We evaluated whether they were correct."
Studying groundhog predictions from as far back as a century and as far south as Georgia, the team found the large rodents aren't very accurate.
"We found flipping a coin is just as good as groundhog prediction as to whether it will be an early spring," he said
Even if they're wrong half the time, there's always next year.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Lanny McDonald and a few old Flames take the Stanley Cup on a surprise visit to the man who saved his life
The Stanley Cup was passing through town Friday, and Lanny Legend took it upon himself to take it for a surprise visit.
Father who killed one-year-old son with axe may be allowed to travel in southwestern Ontario
A Mennonite father who killed his one-year-old son with an axe may be allowed to travel to parts of southern Ontario in the coming months
Chad Daybell sentenced to death for killing wife and girlfriend’s two children in jury decision
Jurors resumed deliberations Saturday on whether a man should be sentenced to death after being convicted days earlier of the murders of his wife and his girlfriend’s two youngest children in Idaho.
Robert Pickton stabbed with toothbrush and broken broom handle: victim's family
The family of one of Robert Pickton's victims says the convicted serial killer suffered an incredibly violent death at the hands of another inmate.
'It feels like freedom': Why some Albertans like going nude in nature
Few people can say they accidentally purchased a nude beach — but Shelley can. When she saw a piece of land she could fondly remember camping on was up for sale, she inquired about it and ended up purchasing it. She soon found that there were already inhabitants on it.
Pedestrian dies after being hit by train in Brockville, Ont.
Brockville Police says a pedestrian has died following a collision with a train that was heading to Toronto.
This Calgary home has a giant tree in the middle, and it's for sale
There's a luxury 'tree home' for sale in Calgary.
China lands spacecraft on the moon amid growing space rivalry with U.S.
A Chinese spacecraft has landed on the moon’s far side to collect rocks in a growing space rivalry with U.S.
Panama prepares to evacuate first island in face of rising sea level
On a tiny island off Panama's Caribbean coast, about 300 families are packing their belongings in preparation for a dramatic change. Generations of Gunas who have grown up on Gardi Sugdub in a life dedicated to the sea and tourism will trade that next week for the mainland’s solid ground.