Hamptons Groundhogs Disagree in Groundhog Day Forecast

The Groundhog Day forecast was cloudy Sunday when three Hamptons groundhogs gave contradicting seasonal prognostications on whether the weather will be wintry or spring-like over the next six weeks.

Allen McButterpants did not see his shadow at the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Center in Hampton Bays for the third year in a row, meaning spring will arrive early, according to groundhog lore. But groundhogs named after famous TV meteorologists Sam Champion and Al Roker both did see their shadows at the Quogue Library, suggesting that there will be six more weeks of winter.

“Allen McButterpants does not see his shadow … because we have had enough,” his handler, Tammy Flanell, the center’s education caretaker, told bundled-up Groundhog Day revelers who applauded in the chilly weather.

McButterpants was an outlier among his contemporaries. The forecast from Sam Champion and Al Roker was in line with Holtsville Hal, Malverne Mel, Buffalo Bert, and groundhog-in-chief Punxsutawney Phil, who all saw their shadows.

But McButterpants was not alone in his prediction of an early spring. In agreement with him were Staten Island Chuck, upstate New York’s Dunkirk Dave, and groundhogs in New Jersey and Connecticut.

After the festivities, a mix of snow and rain fell Sunday night on parts of Long Island. As for the National Weather Service, Upton-based meteorologists expect a dusting of snow Wednesday followed by a mix of snow, freezing rain and sleet over the weekend.

The agency’s Climate Prediction Center gave a 50% chance of above-average temperatures over the next 30 days and an equal chance of the same amount of precipitation as last year.