This is the earliest that I've ever seen a groundhog coming out of Winter hibernation. Usually, they first appear near the end of March at the earliest. So, maybe this means we will have an early Spring in 2023. Checking out the yard, this fellow seemed a bit disappointed that there wasn't a lot of fresh vegetation for him to eat. That will change when the weather eventually stays consistently warm.

The high today was a balmy 65 degrees. However, the high tomorrow will only be a frigid 25 degrees. Quite a change! So, Spring isn't here quite yet. It will be interesting to see what the groundhog does as the tempts currently go dramatically up & down.

Here is an interesting article on Groundhog Hibernation: https://floofmania.com/groundhog-hibernation/ Therefore, seeing a groundhog out & about in February is not a total anomaly. Since it was sunny on Groundhog Day (20 days ago), folklore predicted 6 more weeks of Winter. However, we'll now see what a real, live, wild groundhog really has to say about that. If Bella's barking can be believed, she may have actually spotted this awake groundhog several days before I did. Bella checks for wildlife all year round.

This groundhog is one of Mabel's pups.