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The legend of Punxsutawney Phil claims that there's only ever been ONE Phil . . . and he's been making predictions since 1886. He achieves this immortality by drinking a secret "elixir of life."
But in reality, a groundhog's lifespan is only a few years . . . and they were reminded of that in Quebec, Canada this week.
Their famous groundhog is Fred la Marmotte. (Marmotte is French for groundhog.) But the night before Groundhog Day, they discovered that he'd passed away.
There wasn't time to get a replacement, so they announced the sad news at the ceremony. But they did have a Plan B: Instead of a real groundhog, they used a child and a stuffed animal as a stand in.
They DID see a shadow . . . predicting six more weeks of winter.
There WILL be a new groundhog next year . . . Fred Junior, one of Fred la Marmotte's sons. No funeral arrangements have been announced for Fred.
By the way, here's how the results shook out elsewhere:
Punxsutawney Phil in Pennsylvania . . . six more weeks of winter.
Shubenacadie Sam in Nova Scotia, Canada . . . six more weeks of winter.
Lucy the Lobster, also in Nova Scotia . . . six more weeks of winter.
Wiarton Willie in Ontario, Canada . . . early spring.
Manitoba Merv in, well, Manitoba, Canada . . . six more weeks of winter.
Balzac Billy in Alberta, Canada, who's always just a person in a groundhog costume . . . early spring.
There's a news story on the situation, here.