Nova Scotia’s Lucy the Lobster Disagrees With Groundhogs’ Prediction of Early Spring

Nova Scotia's Lucy the Lobster. Courtesy of Visit Barrington

While several famous groundhogs have predicted an early spring, Nova Scotia’s Lucy the Lobster says Canada can expect six more weeks of winter.

Groundhog Day folklore says that if a groundhog comes out of its burrow on Feb. 2 and sees its shadow, it forecasts six more weeks of winter. If it does not see its shadow, expect an early spring.

In Nova Scotia, the go-to groundhog for weather predictions is Shubenacadie Sam, who lives at the Shubenacadie Provincial Wildlife Park in Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia.

According to the Park’s Facebook page, Sam is expecting an early spring.

“It’s been a snow cloud kind of morning here at the Wildlife Park. It’s been a confirmed shadow-LESS prediction by Shubenacadie Sam! An early spring has been predicted,” a Feb. 2 post said.

Shubenacadie Sam was the first groundhog in North America to make a prediction, but it took him some time to emerge, and then he quickly ducked under an evergreen tree.

But don’t pack away your winter gear yet, as another trusted weather predictor, Lucy the Lobster, disagrees with Sam.

Lucy calls Barrington, Nova Scotia home, and a social media post from her official account indicates more winter to come for Canada.

“I saw my shadow,” the post on X, formerly Twitter, said. “6 more weeks of wonderful winter!”

However, Lucy is alone in forecasting a longer winter.

Other prognosticating Canadian groundhogs—Ontario’s Wiarton Willie and Quebec’s Fred la Marmotte—agreed with Sam and did not see their shadows.

This year was Fred’s first event, as he was brought in to replace the previous critter who was found dead shortly before Feb. 2, 2023.

Sam was gracious to Lucy over the “mistake.”

“Rookie mistake @LucyLobsterNS ! Early spring here in Shubenacadie and Punxsutawney Phil @GroundhogClub agrees,” he said in a post on X.

Lucy’s appearance kicks off the South Shore Lobster Crawl in Nova Scotia, which lasts the entire month of February with events and activities, and lots of freshly prepared lobster dishes to go around.

Groundhog Day in North America can be traced back to 1887, when Punxsutawney Phil became the center of festivities on Feb. 2 each year, according to Encyclopedia Britannica.

The popularity of the celebration was heightened in 1993 when Columbia Pictures released the Bill Murray movie, “Groundhog Day,” about a weatherman who has to live out the same day over and over again.

While Phil fans claim the critter is not wrong in his forecasts, statistics show he has been correct about 40 percent of the time, Britannica said.

Early February has been regarded as significant for many cultures, as it falls between the winter solstice and spring equinox.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.