Sunny Weather Forecast For Groundhog Day In Florida

The weather-forecasting groundhog Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow on Groundhog Day, Feb. 2. According to folklore, spring will come early if the groundhog doesn’t see its shadow and will last another six weeks if it does. That may not mean much for Florida residents and snowbirds as mild temperatures are forecast for most of February.

For the record, spring doesn’t officially arrive this year until March 20, and that’s a little more than six weeks away. Long-range forecasts suggest bitterly cold temperatures will persist from the Midwest to the Northeast.

Punxsutawney Phil, the famous handle given to those varmints that are roused at sunrise for the annual ritual, isn’t that accurate a barometer for the end of the winter — surprising considering the ritual has been going on for more than 120 years.

Stormfax Almanac, which keeps records, says Punxsutawney Phil has been correct only 39 percent of the time. The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club says its records show groundhog forecasts have predicted more winter in 103 cases and early springs in 17. About nine years of records are missing. Did the groundhogs revolt? No one knows.

The ritual involving Punxsutawney Phil is a big deal in the Pennsylvania town of about 5,800, but several other states have their own observances. Punxsutawney Phil makes his predictions at Gobbler’s Knob in the Pennsylvania Wilds, and everyone who’s anyone comes out to see him.

According to AccuWeather.com, which will release its region-by-region spring forecast Feb. 7, winter isn’t leaving anytime soon for other parts of the U.S. Bitterly cold air will make a return by mid-February for much of the country, and several regions are in for a lot more snow. Florida's forecast for February calls for temperatures in the 70s with the threat of a few thunderstorms.

Here are five things to know about Groundhog Day:

1. Before there was a Groundhog Day, there was Candlemas, an early Christian holiday in which candles were blessed and distributed by local clergy. The celebrants eventually declared that clear skies on Candlemas meant winter would persist. Germans selected an animal — the hedgehog — to predict the end of winter, and brought the idea to America. Groundhogs, which are also known as woodchucks, were plentiful in Pennsylvania, where many Germans settled, so the tradition was Americanized.

2. Punxsutawney Phil has his own “inner circle” — the guys who are always pictured wearing top hats as he emerges. They’re a group of local dignitaries charged with planning the festivities and ensuring they come off without a hitch every year, but also with the feeding and care of Phil.

3. Punxsutawney Phil is pretty spoiled. He doesn’t have to burrow into the dirt to survive winter like less-famous groundhogs. He lives in a warm terrarium built into the Punxsutawney library and visitors can stop and gawk at him any time they want.

4. Groundhogs have an average lifespan of six to eight years, ten tops, but Punxsutawney Phil gets a life-extending elixir — called “groundhog punch” — every summer during the annual Groundhog Picnic to extend his lifespan by as much as seven years. An added effect of the punch is that it makes Phil appear to have gotten a dye job, because his coat might be gray one year and a youngish-looking brown the next.

Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images News/Getty Images