Annually, Groundhog Day falls on Feb. 2. Here's the tradition behind the holiday and why PETA wants to change it.

Annually, Groundhog Day falls on Feb. 2. Here's the tradition behind the holiday and why PETA wants to change it.

Groundhog Punxsutawney Phil pictured as he makes his prediction on how long winter will last during the Groundhog Day Festivities, at Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania on Feb. 2, 2024.

The day eventually evolved into what we know it today. In 1886, Groundhog Day was acknowledged for the first time in Punxsutawney by a local newspaper, Weathers Wags, according to the club.

The day eventually evolved into what we know it today. In 1886, Groundhog Day was acknowledged for the first time in Punxsutawney by a local newspaper, Weathers Wags, according to the club.

The weather-predicting groundhog celebrity has met two presidents and drinks a life-extending elixir: "Our Phil is like, probably 139 years old," Groundhog Club Inner Circle President Tom Dunkel says.

Groundhog Day 2025 was significant to Phil because it was his first time prognosticating as a father. The animal and his wife, Phyllis, welcomed two kits, Sunny and Shadow, in March 2024.

Groundhog handler AJ Derume and Punxsutawney Phil, who saw his shadow, predicting a late spring during the 137th annual Groundhog Day festivities on Feb. 2, 2023, in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.

Groundhog Day is a cultural phenomenon that has been celebrated in the U.S. and Canada since 1887. According to folklore, if Phil sees his shadow and retreats to his burrow, winter will persist ...

Groundhog Day is Sunday, and now is a good time to familiarize yourself before you check out the annual weather forecasting festivals in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. Here's what you need ...

Groundhog Day marks the midpoint of winter, blending European folklore with modern fun as Americans turn to a groundhog’s shadow to predict the season’s outcome — either six more weeks of ...