Local Groundhogs Make Different Predictions About Winter's End

With practically no snowfall in January, it has felt like winter never really arrived.

Whether or not that’s a sign that the coldest season of the year will end early depends on which local groundhog you trust.

Allen McButterpants, the resident groundhog at the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center in Hampton Bays, predicted an early spring on Groundhog Day, February 2, in what is his rookie season as a plump and furry prognosticator. That was a welcome outcome for most local residents — and a prediction many surely will be hoping is true after a weekend cold snap.

But later in the day, in a ceremony at the Quogue Library, another groundhog begged to differ. Sam Champion of the STAR Foundation, based in Middle Island, spotted his shadow, predicting six more weeks of winter.

Allen McButterpants looked more like a seasoned veteran than a first-timer while making his prediction. He ambled around, sniffing the ground, stopping to take a look at the crowd that had gathered at the center in Hampton Bays, and then even took a quick roll in the grass. Clearly, there was no shadow in sight to spook him back into his enclosure.

It’s likely that winter does not agree with McButterpants much anyway: He lives at the rescue center because he has a neurological condition that makes it impossible for him to hibernate in the winter. Groundhogs in the wild would only come out at this time of year in search of food or a mate.

Sam Champion had a different approach. He was eager to return to the safety of his pen, and when onlookers and children who came to the library for the festivities gathered around to look at him in his enclosure back inside the library, he repeatedly scurried back underneath his cozy towel to hide.

Sam Champion’s prediction was in line with the prediction of the country’s most famous groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil — but Allen McButterpants was not afraid to be an outlier.

Tammy Flanell of the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Center, who served as master of ceremonies, pointed out that Phil is only accurate about 40 percent of the time. She said Allen differs from the celebrity groundhog, who typically comes out at 6:30 a.m. to make his prediction, in other ways as well.

“We decided, after Allen and I spoke, that he’s not a morning person,” Flanell said.

She pointed out that he was ready to go when he came out to make his prediction later that morning. “He’s very excited,” she said. “He had a good night’s sleep and a nice meal, so he’s ready to go.”

Shortly after, he made the prediction everyone was hoping to hear. After scooping him up and letting him “whisper” in her ear, Flanell said: “The official proclamation is that Allen McButterpants does not see his shadow!”