{"id":11871,"date":"2019-01-31T17:06:13","date_gmt":"2019-01-31T17:06:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/?p=11871"},"modified":"2025-02-18T19:25:32","modified_gmt":"2025-02-18T23:25:32","slug":"can-groundhogs-predict-the-weather","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/can-groundhogs-predict-the-weather\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Groundhogs Predict the Weather?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Groundhog\"<\/a>Groundhogs are good at many things, said Brian MacGowan, Purdue University Extension wildlife specialist and Forestry and Natural Resources Extension coordinator, but predicting the weather definitely isn\u2019t one of them.<\/p>\n

The lore surrounding Groundhog Day originated in Germany where people used the reactions of badgers and hedgehogs to gauge weather patterns. When the tradition eventually migrated to America, Jarred Brooke, Extension wildlife specialist, said hedgehogs, which can be found throughout the United States, became the mammalian forecaster of choice.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re crafty little critters,\u201d McGowan explains, \u201cwhich is why they\u2019re found in so many different places. They\u2019re habitat generalists and can live in open woodlands, grasslands, what have you.\u201d<\/p>\n

While MacGowan and Brooke agreed groundhogs don\u2019t have a great track-record of weather prediction, other facts make groundhogs one of the more interesting members of the squirrel-family.<\/p>\n

For full article see: Groundhogs can\u2019t predict the weather but they do poop underground<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Resources:
\nSelecting a Nuisance Wildlife Control Professional<\/a> \u2013 The Education Store, Purdue Extension Resource Center
\nPreventing Wildlife Damage \u2013 Do You Need a Permit?<\/a> \u2013 The Education Store
\nThe Basics of Managing Wildlife on Agricultural Lands<\/a> \u2013 The Education Store
\nNuisance Wildlife<\/a> \u2013 Indiana Department of Natural Resources
\nDealing with nuisance geese this spring<\/a> \u2013 Got Nature?
\nAnimal Damage Management: Woodchucks<\/a>, The Education Store<\/p>\n

Brian MacGowan<\/a>, Wildlife\u00a0Extension Specialist
\nPurdue University, Forestry and Natural Resources<\/p>\n

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Jarred Brooke,<\/a> Wildlife\u00a0Extension Specialist
\nPurdue University, Forestry and Natural Resources<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Groundhogs are good at many things, said Brian MacGowan, Purdue University Extension wildlife specialist and Forestry and Natural Resources Extension coordinator, but predicting the weather definitely isn\u2019t one of them. The lore surrounding Groundhog Day originated in Germany where people used the reactions of badgers and hedgehogs to gauge weather patterns. When the tradition eventually […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[42,80,44,53,54,622],"tags":[896,257,72],"class_list":["post-11871","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-forestry","category-trees","category-gotnatureforkids","category-urbanforestry","category-wildlife","category-woodlands","tag-groundhog","tag-purdue-extension","tag-wildlife","audience-for-enthusiasts","audience-for-homeowners","audience-for-landowners","audience-for-professionals"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-22 11:59:23","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11871","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11871"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11871\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32066,"href":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11871\/revisions\/32066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11871"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11871"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11871"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}