Shubenacadie Sam, Lucy the Lobster see shadows, predict six more weeks of winter
Shubenacadie Sam, Lucy the Lobster see shadows, predict six more weeks of winter
Two well-known animals in Nova Scotia shared the same opinion Thursday after seeing their shadows, predicting six more weeks of winter.
Shubenacadie Sam emerged from her burrow to make her annual prediction just after at 8 a.m. Thursday at Shubenacadie Wildlife Park in Shubenacadie, N.S.
“Don’t put away your hat and mitts yet,” Sam said on Twitter after her prediction.
Sam also saw her shadow last year.
If Sam hadn’t seen her shadow, an early spring would be in store, according to folklore.
“Some people say it even goes back to 16th century Germany and a tradition of observing badgers and other wildlife,” said Dr. Andrew Morrison, a manager and veterinarian at Shubenacadie Wildlife Park, after Sam’s prediction.
“It’s just a matter of observing what happens in nature and sort of learning a few things from it.”
Shubenacadie Sam was joined by a much larger groundhog mascot, who danced and shivered in Thursday’s cold temperatures before the real Sam emerged from her home.
Sam slowly left her burrow’s door before scurrying over to about 50 park visitors watching by a nearby fence. Morrison estimates crowds would have been bigger if not for the frigid temperatures.
This year’s event was the first in-person Groundhog Day prediction at the park since 2019.
Sam’s prediction was confirmed within seconds before she went back in her burrow for a rest and a reward.
“She’s going back to bed. She’s gonna warm up and take the day off,” says Morrison, who adds that getting Sam set up for Groundhog Day is “a bit of a procedure.”
“(She) has to be warm … she has to be awake and come out and make sure she’s got a really good breakfast, does her stretches, and then she pops.”
Groundhogs are normally hibernating this time of year.
“Some time around now is when some of them will start to emerge from hibernation and they’ll pop out to take a look around and see how the weather’s going,” Morrison says.
“If the weather’s good, then they’re gonna stay out and start looking for food. If the weather’s cold, they’re gonna go back underground and sleep another few weeks.”
Sam is the first groundhog in North America to make a prediction, about an hour before other groundhogs in Ontario and the eastern United States.
LUCY THE LOBSTER
Lucy the Lobster also predicted six more weeks of winter after seeing her shadow Thursday morning.
Lucy crawled her way out of the ocean for her annual prediction in Barrington, N.S., which is considered the lobster capital of Canada.
It didn’t take long before the call was made official.
"It's official. She sees her shadow," said Alain Bossé, also known as The Kilted Chef, who helped Lucy with her prediction on Thursday.
Lucy's prediction is the first event to kick off the Nova Scotia Lobster Crawl festival, which runs from Feb. 1 to Feb. 28 on Nova Scotia’s South Shore.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
Ottawa Police are investigating an attempted break-in at the residence of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's national security adviser, the second such incident involving one of his top aides in recent months.
This Sunday, NASA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) will announce the four astronauts that will be blasting off to fly around the moon for the Artemis II mission, one of whom will be a Canadian astronaut.
Gwyneth Paltrow won her court battle over a 2016 ski collision at a posh Utah ski resort after a jury decided Thursday that the movie star wasn't at fault for the crash.
When two skiers collided on a beginner run at an upscale Utah ski resort in 2016, no one could foresee that seven years later, the crash would become the subject of a closely watched celebrity trial.
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
A candidate for the United Conservative Party in southern Alberta has resigned after she posted a video claiming children are being exposed to pornography in schools.
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
Premier Doug Ford is slamming federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault as a “real piece of work” in the wake of public remarks he made suggesting that Ontario has “no plan to fight climate change.”
A candidate for the United Conservative Party in southern Alberta has resigned after she posted a video claiming children are being exposed to pornography in schools.
Three Calgary men face multiple charges after a police investigation that targeted drug traffickers resulted in the seizure of more than $250,000 in drugs, firearms and various rounds of ammunition, other weapons and drug paraphernalia.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has yet to answer direct questions about a growing scandal of her alleged interference with the justice system, but her deputy premier has responded the media about the issue.
Just a week after Airbnb tightened regulations for Quebec listings following a deadly fire, hosts may already be bending the rules. Airbnb now requires its hosts to provide a six-digit policy number with their listing, obtained when a tourist lodging is registered with the provincial government. But a scroll through the Airbnb website suggests users are falsifying their permit numbers to sneak past the authentication process.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
A proposed class-action lawsuit over infamous brainwashing experiments at a Montreal psychiatric hospital was before Quebec's highest court Thursday, as victims attempted to remove immunity granted to the United States government.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has yet to answer direct questions about a growing scandal of her alleged interference with the justice system, but her deputy premier has responded the media about the issue.
The Alberta government has revealed plans for some of the $211 million it will spend over the next three years expanding and improving parks, campgrounds and recreation trails.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
First Nations and Catholic Church officials in Algoma are calling the Vatican's repudiation of the ‘Doctrine of Discovery,’ an important step toward reconciliation.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
When the store manager at La Noisette Bakery arrived Thursday morning to open the small shop on Oxford Street, she discovered that one of the two large circular windows at the side of their building was shattered.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
Two Manitoba hunting outfitters have been fined thousands of dollars and lost their licenses after a four-year investigation revealed numerous violations of the wildlife act.
Two classes at Roberta Bondar Public School in Ottawa's south end were closed on Thursday due to a lack of teachers, leaving parents and guardians scrambling to make accommodations for their children.
Students at the University of Saskatchewan (U of S) are highlighting stories of Ukrainian youth killed in the Russian invasion who were in school working towards a diploma or degree.
Ninety-five deaths in Saskatchewan have been linked to COVID-19 since the start of the year as vaccination rates continue to lag. No influenza-related deaths were reported over the same period.
A new program on Vancouver's Downtown Eastside will help connect women to vital primary health care services, eliminating barriers in an attempt to save lives.
Officials at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, B.C., have accepted the return of an honorary degree awarded to Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, the former judge and law professor whose claims of Indigenous ancestry have been discredited.
The Canadian Pharmacists Association says protecting Canadian drug supplies from mass exportation to the U.S. market remains a priority in light of British Columbia's recent move to limit sales of the diabetes drug Ozempic, which has been hyped as a weight-loss treatment.
The Regina Anti-Poverty Ministry filed a charter challenge against the provincial government for stipulations in its disability program that require seniors to take their Canada Pension Plan (CPP) money out early.
A Mass Casualty Commission report that came out on Thursday following a mass shooting in Nova Scotia in 2020 may have a local impact on the RCMP Depot model being phased out.
Ninety-five deaths in Saskatchewan have been linked to COVID-19 since the start of the year as vaccination rates continue to lag. No influenza-related deaths were reported over the same period.
A 32-year-old man from Campbell River, B.C., has been sentenced to four years in prison for the beating death of a 59-year-old homeless man in October 2020.
The largest food bank service on southern Vancouver Island is reeling after a fire damaged part of its facility in Victoria, resulting in fresh and canned foods needing to be thrown out.
U.S. authorities on Thursday said they arrested a Washington state man who made more than 20 “swatting” calls around the country and in Canada, prompting real emergency responses to his fake reports of bombs, shootings or other threats.
