Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow on Groundhog Day

I closed 'SNL' examines Tom Homan replacing Greg Bovino in its cold open and Weekend Update by telling my readers, "Stay tuned for Groundhog Day. I bet Phil sees his shadow." He did. LiveNOW from FOX reported Groundhog Day: Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow.

Groundhog Day forecast: Punxsutawney Phil is said to have seen his shadow Monday morning, predicting 6 more weeks of winter weather.

That was an easy call. Here in southeast Michigan, which has a similar climate to western Pennsylvania, it was clear and cold with a foot of snow on the ground, so all signs pointed to six more weeks of winter. In fact, that's what Woody, our local woodchuck in Howell, Michigan, predicted: "Michigan's official groundhog, Woody the Woodchuck, predicted six more weeks of winter." On the one hand, no surprise. On the other, brr!

The Weather Channel had its own commentary on the occasion, Shadow Breakdown: Chuck Burrows and Stephanie Abrams on Punxsutawney Phil's Prognostication.

The verdict from Gobbler’s Knob is official: Punxsutawney Phil spotted his shadow and called for six more weeks of winter. Join Stephanie Abrams and The Weather Channel’s own Senior Shadow Analyst, Chuck Burrows, as they break down the "game film" from this morning’s prediction.

Chuck Burrows *Snork!* The Weather Channel's Emmy-winning graphics department strikes again!

Should we take these predictions seriously? WFAA says not very in Today is Groundhog Day! Here's what we know about these animal prognosticators.


Like the anchor, I had never heard of most of these animal forecasters before. Count this as learning something new, and it's always a good day when I learn something new. By the way, while the average accuracy of the animal auguries is 36%, Woody boasts a record of 65%. That's worth paying attention to.

That's a wrap for today's holiday. Stay tuned for more closer looks from the late night talk show hosts tomorrow.