Groundhog Day 2013

Early spring? The groundhog says…

Alex Wong / Getty Images

By Scott Stump, MSN TODAY Animal Tracks contributor

Let the spring fever commence!

Punxsutawney Phil crawled out early Saturday morning and did not see his shadow, signaling it will be an early spring.

"Spring, bring it on," said TODAY’s Erica Hill.

"The groundhog has proved me wrong once again," said TODAY’s Dylan Dreyer, who guessed the Phil would see his shadow. "He messes me up."

Anthony Quintano / NBC News

This year is the 127th Groundhog Day celebration, which is held at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.

Coming into this year, Phil had seen his shadow 100 times and had not seen it only 16 times since 1886, according to Punxsutawney Groundhog Club’s Inner Circle. There are no records for the missing 10 years. The 15 members of the inner circle, clad in tophats and tuxedos, decide in advance whether to announce Phil has seen his shadow or not, even though the groundhog does the symbolic duty.

In Punxsutawney, which is about 65 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, the groundhog annual makes his prediction on a hill known as Gobbler’s Knob. The event annually attracts more than 15,000 people and brought as many as 30,000 in the wake of the 1993 release of the Bill Murray classic movie "Groundhog Day,” according to the Inner Circle. There also are updates on Twitter and Facebook.

Alex Wong / Getty Images

According to local reports, about 35,000 people gathered to watch Phil’s annual forecast.

The celebration dates to the early Christians in Europe, particularly the Germans, who were some of the earliest settlers of Pennsylvania and believed the groundhog’s intelligence was such that if the sun came out on Feb. 2 it would be smart enough to go back underground for another six weeks of winter. The first written observance of the tradition came in 1886 after it had earlier been conducted privately in wooded areas outside town.

Slideshow: Punxsutawney Phil, the weather-prognosticating groundhog

David Maxwell / EPA

Groundhog Day 2013: Staten Island Chuck predicts early spring for New York City

NY Daily News: Chuck did not see his shadow when he came out of his burrow at the Staten Island Zoo this morning

Joe Marino/for New York Daily News – Staten Island Chuck did not see his shadow this year.

The city is due for an early spring according to Staten Island Chuck, who did not see his shadow – or old rival Mayor Bloomberg – Saturday morning.

The local groundhog did not spot his shadow when he crawled out of his home in the Staten Island Zoo, which mirrored the prediction of his more acclaimed brethren, Punxsutawney Phil.

Joe Marino/for New York Daily News -  City Council Speaker Christine Quinn wore special gloves made of Kevlar for 2013′s Groundhog Day festivities. The gloves made specially for the Mayor, who could not attend after being bitten last year.

Bloomberg was a noticeable no-show for the event. He famously was bitten by the rodent in 2009 and has repeatedly made his hatred of Chuck a running joke in the following years.

A mayoral spokesman noted that this was the fifth time out of his 12 years in office that Bloomberg did not attend the Groundhog Day event. No reason for his absence was provided.

Joe Marino/for New York Daily News -  Staten Island Chuck coming out of his home at the Staten Island zoo.

His Hizzoner’s role was filled by City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who can have many more up-close-and-personal encounters with Chuck if she is successful in her own mayoral bid. Quinn also led the ceremony in 2008.

Bloomberg has largely backed Quinn but has not offered an official endorsement. It was not clear if the Groundhog’s Day ceremony was intended to be an official passing of the torch – or, passing of heavy-duty work gloves – from Bloomberg to Quinn.

Joe Marino/for New York Daily News  -  Crowds gathered on Feb. 2, 2013 at the Staten Island Zoo to await Staten Island Chuck’s prediction of how soon spring will come.

The Speaker led the cheers when Chuck delivered his forecast soon after sunrise.

A similar, though grander, spectacle also took place about 315 miles to the west when Punxsutawney Phil emerged from his home in Gobbler’s Knob before thousands of people chanting his name.

He "consulted" with tophat-wearing local leaders before decreeing that an early spring was on the horizon.

Those tired of the bone-chilling temperatures that have blanketed the Northeast should hope that his predictive powers have grown more accurate. Last year, he declared that six more weeks of winter were ahead – yet the stretch between January and July 2012 was the warmest on record, according to the National Weather Service.

The Groundhog Day ceremony has exploded in popularity since the release of the movie by the same name, Groundhog Day, which starred Bill Murray and came out 20 years ago this week.  It is a great movie to own and make part of your yearly Groundhog Day tradition: Groundhog Day (15th Anniversary Special Edition) [Blu-ray]

jlemire@nydailynews.com

Hollywood Beach (Florida) Groundhog Day event

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