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Groundhog Day 2008
So far this year we have heard a lot
about the latest poll
Most of us are more concerned with winters cold and flu seasons toll
Our primary concern is “Where are the tissues”
What difference does it make when you’re sick in bed
We care about the end of winter’s drudgery
What matters today is when spring will be
I Dover Doug have been working on my prognostication
I use my groundhog contemplation
My 2008 Groundhog Day prediction is a safe bet
Groundhog Day 2007
Some may think Dover Doug leads a life
of ease
To work one day a year must be a breeze
But I must admit I feel a lot of
stress and strain
A perfect record is hard to maintain
A wrong prediction is what I fear
The ever changing weather has put my abilities to the test.
One day is cold the next it’s
mild
It has been enough to drive me wild
It fact it has been down right rough
I have arrived at a prognostication
And it will be six more weeks till winter is over
Groundhog Day 2006
I’ve heard a lot about a Supreme Court confirmation
Then they spend to do the job right
Our predictions wouldn’t come till Independence Day
Today you will have Dover Doug’s prognostication have no fear
I have groundhog authority!
In fact some say it has been rather mild
Has given me cause for much contemplation
Is not an easy thing
And always the same answer I find
6 more weeks of winter will be our fate.
GROUNDHOG DAY 2005
This is the fourth
time we have gathered for this celebration
To hear Dover
Doug’s prognostication
The prediction we
await with great anticipation
Some folks view with
speculation
Meteorology is a
science
They say with some
defiance
The prediction of
weather is dependant on complex components
To complicated for
overgrown rodents
Don’t fear, Let
these doubters have their say
My fellow groundhogs
and I will prove them wrong again this day
My ability defies
explanation
My groundhog mind is
a complete weather station
So for my prediction
this year
I have a poem for all
to hear
There once was a
groundhog from
In the summer he
liked to eat clover
In the winter of 2005
Will his hopes of
spring survive or take a dive?
So here’s my
prognostication for my friends in
It will take six more
weeks till winter is over!
Dover Doug’s
Prognostication 2004
We are gathered here at
last
And another year has
gone past.
Stormy and wet was
2003,
Of that I am sure we
will all agree.
But what will this year
bring,
6 more weeks of winter
or an early spring.
These days of dark and
cold sure are dreary.
They can make your
hearts grow rather weary.
When you look out your
window at a landscape bleak,
As you walk outdoors
and a winter wind bites your cheek.
Each day we trudge
through the ice and snow
Wondering to ourselves
will winter ever go.
With each storm we ask,
Will this be
winter’s final blast?
Once again you good
folks have gathered at the place,
To hear
So no matter if winter
makes your spirits high or low,
Remember, I’m your
friend and not your foe.
For those that like
their weather warm, don’t despair,
The scent of spring
will once again be in the air.
So here is my
prognostication for Groundhog Day 2004,
I hate to say, winter
has 6 weeks more.
Doug's Prognostication for 2003:
Groundhog Day 2003
Once again it’s Groundhogs Day,
And Dover Doug has much to say.
For those that like their days sunny and warm,
Their hopes have been a bit forlorn.
Old man winter has done his best,
To put their good cheer to the test.
With all this snow and ice it’s hard to cope,
Their dreams of spring seem bound by rope.
But my friends have no fear,
Dover Doug knows winter end is near.
From winters ties in 2003,
We will all soon be set free.
I have no doubt my prognostication is clear,
An early spring will soon be here.
Grand Poobah, Marc Strausbaugh and Burrow
Keener, Burrow Master
& Strausbaugh, Grand
Master Don Keener welcome Dover Doug on
Poobah were ready to
tie things up if Dover
February 2, 2003
Doug's 'prediction' was unfavorable.
The things you're expected to do as Grand Poobah
and Burrow Master!
(The following exerpts are from the Cornell Chronical)
Groundhog, woodchuck -- what's the difference?
Woodchuck and groundhog are common terms for the same animal, the rodent with the scientific name of Marmota monax. Most closely related to squirrels, woodchucks actually can climb trees and also swim.
What's so special about Feb. 2?
Celestially speaking, Groundhog Day on Feb. 2 is a "cross-quarter" day, about halfway between the winter solstice in December and the ver nal equinox in March, and is celebrated in some cultures as the mid point of winter. It's not far from the time many groundhogs end their hi bernation anyway, around the second week of February.
What's going on in that burrow?
In the winter, not much. Groundhogs go into profound hibernation, greatly reducing their metabolic rate, and their body temperature drops to just a few degrees above ambient temperature. Because their hibernaculum, the deepest portion of the burrow where they hibernate, is below frost line, that produces a body temperature as low as 39-40 degrees F.
What's the wake-up call?
The groundhog's internal clock is believed to be affected by annual changes in the amount of daylight. Hormonal responses to cyclic changes in production of melatonin, a sleep-related hormone, are thought by some to be the signal to wake up.
Why did groundhog fur coats go out of fashion?
Groundhog fur never was in vogue, partly because it is not particularly thick and warm, and because the fur's grizzled grey-brown appearance is more appealing to others of their species than to people. Groundhog hairs are used for tying trout flies, such as the 'Chuck Caddis, and early Ameri can Indians once used sturdy woodchuck hides for soles of moccasins.
What's for dinner?
Groundhogs in the wild eat succulent green plants, such as dandelion greens, clover, plantain and grasses. They also are tempted by nearby gar den vegetables. At Cornell, they dine on Agway Woodchuck Chow, a simi lar formulation to rabbit feed but in larger-sized pellets. Woodchucks binge and purposefully put on weight in the summer, reaching their maxi mum mass in late August. They become lethargic and prepare for hiber nation in October. By February, hibernating woodchucks have lost as much as half their body weight.
How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
About 700 pounds. Compared to beavers, groundhogs/woodchucks are not adept at moving timber, although some will chew wood. (At Cornell, woodchucks that gnaw their wooden nest boxes are given scraps of 2-by-4 lumber.) A wildlife biologist once measured the inside volume of a typical woodchuck burrow and estimated that -- if wood filled the hole instead of dirt -- the industrious animal would have chucked about 700 pounds' worth.
Sources: College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University; New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; Mammals of the Eastern United States, Second Edi tion, William J. Hamilton Jr. and John O. Whitaker Jr.
http://www.eagle.ca/ipg/gopher.html
WOODCHUCK (Groundhog, Marmot) Marmota monax
Medium close-up of Groundhog/Cobourg-1990
Original:B&W neg/35mm
Format:GIF from scan/256 grayscale
Habitat:
Open woods, brushy and rocky ravines.
Behaviour:
Diurnal for most part; may wander at night in early spring. Feeds on tender, succulent plants. Dens in extensive burrow with 2 or
more openings; may be 4-5ft. (120-150cm) deep and 25-30ft. (8-9.5m) long- known to have
excavated dirt at 1 opening, others dug from below, concealed. Hibernates
Oct.-Feb. Voice a shrill whistle. Lives 4 - 5 years. Mates in
March or April; breeds at 1 year. Young: Born
April-May; 2-6; gestation period 31-32 days; 1 litter a year. Naked;
blind.
Home range: 40-160
acres (16.2-65ha).
Economic
status: In an agricultural area the Woodchuck can do considerable
damage to crops; in other areas it is probably beneficial, since its burrows are refuges
and homes for many other mammals such as game and furbearers.
URL: http://www.eagle.ca/ipg/gopher.html
Bibliography: Burt,
William Henry. A Field Guide to the Mammels/The Peterson
Field Guide Series.