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Move over Phil: Squirrels, too, offer weather predictions

Down the Lane

February 09, 2011|By Sue Staton

Sue Staton

Check the squirrels and woolly worms out next year.

What a winter we are having. As I write this, I am reminded of a day I witnessed this fall. It was our very first cold day of the year. I was looking out my kitchen window, when all of a sudden I watched three squirrels running down my maple tree in the back yard. It looked as though they might be going to play a game. However, a game was not on these three squirrels’ minds that day.

It looked like they had just had a meeting of the minds before they had exited that tree. What I witnessed next was both amusing and awesome. I watched those three little squirrels work tirelessly the rest of the afternoon.

As soon as one squirrel could gather nuts and run up the tree, another one would be hot on his trail taking his supplies up the tree to bury for use during the winter. They hauled off a box of my fall gatherings, I had planned to make a fall wreath with that I had sitting on my deck. They hauled nuts, sweet gum balls, burr oaks, acorns, and who knows what else up that maple tree. They seemed untiring in their efforts of planning ahead.

That evening, I mentioned to my husband, “If the squirrels are any indication of the winter we are going to have, it is going to be a bad one.”

In years past, I have observed the woolly worms, and they too, have been good indicators of the upcoming winters.

However, this year I never saw any woolly worms at all before winter. So, I am going to tell you of my clues of the past. I have to say I have no scientific proof of the woolly worm predicting winter other than my own observations.

So, here goes.

Since I had heard you could tell about winter by looking at a woolly worm from others, I decided to check out one and see for myself if it held true to this belief.

Here is what I have noticed. If you see a woolly worm black on each end and brown in the middle, the winter usually begins early and ends late, but is mild through the middle of the season. If the woolly worm is only black on one end, it is usually a very mild winter with only one small period of snow. I have also noticed the darker the brown shade or lighter the brown shade on the woolly worm determines whether the temperature is colder or milder. The darker shade is colder. If the woolly worm is all brown, we barely have any severe weather or cold temperatures.

Next year, I am going to follow the squirrels’ clues a little more closely and get my supplies for winter early.

We could have used some salt around our doors and walkways this year due to the ice and snow. My husband couldn’t shovel fast enough to keep it away.

One thing I have also observed in the past is that no matter how bleak the winters are, spring just looks more beautiful and welcome. Every day we are getting closer to spring.

Now, we will have to watch to see how good the groundhog’s predictions are. Unfortunately, I have noticed that he, too, is a good weather indicator.

Have you ever wondered what the animals derive from our actions when winter approaches?

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