Mount Washington marmots Chopper and Marla saw their shadows on Groundhog Day thus predicting another six weeks of winter. (Vancouver Island Marmot Recovery Foundation)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

SIX. MORE. WEEKS.

Van Isle marmots bundling up for prolonged winter, regular forecaster misses annual assignment

Feb 2, 2021 | 10:05 AM

NANAIMO — We’re not out of the winter woods yet.

The ‘official’ prediction from Vancouver Island’s marmot population is for six more weeks of winter after substitute prognosticators Chopper and Marlu were called on to predict whether or not we’d have an early spring.

“They made it clear they didn’t like being woken up in the early morning in early February with several months of hibernation left,” Adam Taylor, executive director of the Vancouver Island Marmot Recovery Foundation, said.

Vancouver Island’s usual weather-watching groundhog, Van Isle Violet, couldn’t be found for her big day.

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Violet lives at Mount Washington but had a malfunction in her tracker battery so members of the foundation haven’t been able to keep tabs on her since the summer.

Taylor said he was hopeful the often shy Van Isle Violet could be located for next year as she tends to be more optimistic with her predictions.

Populations on Mount Washington of the marmot, a species exclusive to Vancouver Island, are growing thanks to work by the foundation.

The animals reside in two main areas, one near Mount Washington and the other in the Nanaimo Lakes region.

There are currently around 200 living in the wild, a substantial increase from around 30 in 2003.

“It’s about as close to extinction as you can get for a species. 200 is clearly still incredibly endangered but we’re extremely pleased to see the population is recovering,” Taylor said.

Mount Washington hosts a capture breeding facility and the foundation works with zoo’s in Calgary and Toronto before reintroducing the animals into the wild.

Elsewhere in Canada Nova Scotia’s Shubenacadie Sam and Quebec’s Fred la Marmotte both predicted an early spring.

Ontario’s Wiarton Willie was actually a no-show for his annual appearance while in the US Punxsutawney Phil forecast six more weeks of winter.

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