More Midwest Groundhogs Are Predicting Weather Than You Think

Before we talk rodents and forecasts, here’s a fun local twist.

The movie Groundhog Day may be set in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, but a slice of that Hollywood magic happened right here in the Rockford area. The wild scene where Bill Murray drives a red pickup truck off a cliff was filmed at Nimtz Quarry in Loves Park, with crews spending nearly two weeks staging the stunt. And the “Pennsylvania” town square in the film? You probably already know that was actually Woodstock, Illinois, only a short drive from us.

In case you missed the news from earlier this morning, the granddaddy of them all, the world-famous Punxsutawney Phil, saw his shadow and predicted six more weeks of winter.

But, what did Illinois' own group of weather-prognosticating ground hogs have to say?

Just Because The Bigshot East Coast Groundhog Says We're Getting More Winter Doesn't Mean That Midwestern Groundhogs Are On Board With That

Woodstock Willie in Illinois did not see his shadow, calling for an early spring instead. Willie has been making forecasts since the late ’90s and has favored early spring roughly 60 % of the time. Just over the border, Sun Prairie Jimmy in Wisconsin also predicted an early spring at Sun Prairie’s Frozen Fest, with his handlers noting a similar historical accuracy of about 60–65 %.

Across the country, these furry forecasters are more than just local curiosities. According to the tracking site groundhog‑day.com, there are around 88 named weather forecasting animals in North America.

That ground includes 74 American groundhogs, 14 Canadian groundhogs, and more than 50 “alternative” prognosticators ranging from lobsters and armadillos to taxidermied groundhogs and goofy costumed characters.

There are other famous critters too. Buckeye Chuck in Ohio has often offered his own take (sometimes conflicting with Phil), while groundhogs across the country, and even a few surprising animal forecasters like a fish in Ohio, have been cataloged for their predictions.

Before You Decide To Only Get Your Weather Forecast From Animals, Let's Check Their Accuracy Rate

The numbers vary widely. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s rankings put iconic forecasters like Staten Island Chuck near the top with about 85% accuracy, while Punxsutawney Phil sits right around 35%. Midwestern favorites like Gertie, Jimmy, and Woodstock Willie generally cluster around 60%, better than a coin flip but not exactly scientific certainty.