Current:Home > reviewsPunxsutawney Phil is a dad! See the 2 groundhog pups welcomed by Phil and his wife, Phyllis -VisionFunds
Punxsutawney Phil is a dad! See the 2 groundhog pups welcomed by Phil and his wife, Phyllis
View
Date:2025-04-12 15:16:12
Punxsutawney Phil's life just got a whole lot busier. In addition to predicting the weather, the Pennsylvania-based groundhog now has a new title: father.
Phil and his wife, Phyllis, welcomed two new babies, the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club announced on social media Wednesday.
"We have Babies!! The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club is very excited to announce that Phil and Phyllis have given birth to two healthy baby Groundhogs! The babies are currently in with mom and dad at the zoo that is located at the Punxsutawney Memorial Library, and can be viewed thru the viewing window," the club posted on Instagram Wednesday.
"When we went in to feed them their fresh fruits and vegetables, we found Phyllis with two little baby groundhogs. It was very unexpected, we had no idea that she was pregnant," Tom Dunkel, the president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club's Inner Circle, told CBS Pittsburgh.
The club also posted a video of the baby groundhogs on Instagram Wednesday, which you can watch below.
Did Phil see his shadow this year?
Phil did not see his shadow on Feb. 2 at Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, part of the annual Groundhog Day tradition celebrated in the U.S. and Canada. That means, according to the legend, Phil was predicting an early spring.
It was the first time since 2020 that Phil predicted an early spring, and the 21st time since records were kept.
If you look at the data, Punxsutawney Phil has a record of seeing his shadow more often than not. Prior to 2024, the groundhog had seen his shadow 107 times and not seen his shadow 20 times, according to the York Daily Record, part of the USA TODAY Network. There were a few years in the late 1800s where there was no record of his forecast, and 1943 was the only year he did not make an appearance.
How accurate is Punxsutawney Phil?:A question for America's favorite forecaster, Punxsutawney Phil
Punxsutawney Phil goes viral on TikTok
Phil captured the hearts and imagination of TikTok creatives in early February when user @olivesongs11 composed a song based on the lore that Punxsutawney Phil has been alive since 1886, and his longevity comes from an "elixir of life" that he takes a sip of every summer.
According to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, Phyllis is unfortunately not offered the same elixir and is not given her own immortality.
@olivesongs11, also known as the singer/songwriter Oliver Richman, composed a song based on this unbelievable idea.
"Nothing's supposed to live forever, Phyliss," a section of Richman's song, written from Phil's point of view goes in a ballad-like style. "Nothing's supposed to last that long. The burrows we made will eventually fade and I'll be left to sing the same old song."
The video went viral, with over 4.8 million views and 500,000 likes.
Other TikTok users jumped on the idea, posting duets on the app singing to Richman's song as their own version of Phyliss or even as the Punxsutawney Mayor.
Contributing: Emily DeLetter, USA TODAY
Gabe Hauari is a national trending news reporter at USA TODAY. You can follow him on X @GabeHauari or email him at Gdhauari@gannett.com.
veryGood! (47823)
Related
- Biden administration makes final diplomatic push for stability across a turbulent Mideast
- Boston Progressives Expand the Green New Deal to Include Justice Concerns and Pandemic Recovery
- A woman in Ecuador was mistakenly declared dead. A doctor says these cases are rare
- Keeping Up With the Love Lives of The Kardashian-Jenner Family
- Juan Soto to be introduced by Mets at Citi Field after striking record $765 million, 15
- Worst Case Climate Scenario Might Be (Slightly) Less Dire Than Thought
- Missouri woman imprisoned for library worker's 1980 murder will get hearing that could lead to her release
- Swimmers should get ready for another summer short on lifeguards
- A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
- One year after Roe v. Wade's reversal, warnings about abortion become reality
Ranking
- Highlights from Trump’s interview with Time magazine
- FDA advisers back updated COVID shots for fall vaccinations
- Bumblebee Decline Linked With Extreme Heat Waves
- Lake Mead reports 6 deaths, 23 rescues and rash of unsafe and unlawful incidents
- Angelina Jolie nearly fainted making Maria Callas movie: 'My body wasn’t strong enough'
- A woman is in custody after refusing tuberculosis treatment for more than a year
- New Study Projects Severe Water Shortages in the Colorado River Basin
- How a secret Delaware garden suddenly reemerged during the pandemic
Recommendation
Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie return for an 'Encore,' reminisce about 'The Simple Life'
Duck Dynasty's Sadie Robertson Gives Birth, Welcomes Baby No. 2 With Christian Huff
A Climate Change Skeptic, Mike Pence Brought to the Vice Presidency Deep Ties to the Koch Brothers
India's population passes 1.4 billion — and that's not a bad thing
Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
New Study Projects Severe Water Shortages in the Colorado River Basin
Every Time Lord Scott Disick Proved He Was Royalty
National Eating Disorders Association phases out human helpline, pivots to chatbot