Manitoba can expect an early spring in 2021 — at least according to a groundhog puppet.
Manitoba Merv, the furry forecaster at Oak Hammock Marsh, made his annual prediction Tuesday for Groundhog Day, and it’s a positive one for those who are sick of winter.
“This morning, he went out, and he did not see his shadow, so that predicts an early spring,” Teresa Visser of Oak Hammock Marsh told 680 CJOB.
Visser said the veteran forecaster’s predictions have been consistently accurate in past years.
“I have records that it’s about 98 per cent,” she said.
Merv isn’t the only groundhog — puppet or otherwise — calling for an early spring. Many of his Canadian counterparts, including Wiarton Willie and Shubanacadie Sam, had similar forecasts.
In addition to Groundhog Day, Tuesday is also World Wetlands Day, which raises global awareness of the significant impact wetlands have on the worldwide environment.