Along with the infamous Phil from Pennsylvania, there is also General Lee, Buckeye Chuck and another whole host of groundhogs who help predict whether winter arrives early.
The 130-year-old custom dictates that if the groundhog emerges from his hole and sees his own shadow, he will retreat back to its den to signify winter will last a further six weeks.
But if there are cloudy skies when the groundhog – a rodent from the marmota squirrel family – comes above ground – that means the spring season will arrive early.
This year, Phil decided the US will face another six weeks of winter as he turned to see his shadow in Punxsutawney today.
But what is a groundhog?
A groundhog, also known as a woodchuck, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots.
The groundhog was first scientifically described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758.
Measuring about 65cm (26 inches), groundhogs are natural diggers, with short and powerful limbs and short, thick claws.
The animal is covered in two coats of fur, with a grey undercoat underneath and a longer, thicker coat with a burnt orange or reddish hue which gives it a frosted appearance.
The groundhog prefers open country and the edges of woodland, and is rarely far from a burrow entrance.
In the wild, groundhogs can live up to six years with two or three being average.
Where do groundhogs live?
The groundhog is rarely found far from its burrow entrance and far prefers open country and the edges of woodland.
The groundhog can be a pest for farmers – as their keen burrowing skills make them serious nuisance animals around farms and gardens.
The clearing of forests provided the creature with a much more suitable habitat, and so the groundhog population is probably higher now than it was before the arrival of European settlers in North America.
However, groundhogs are often hunted for sport, which tends to control their numbers.
What do they eat?
Groundhogs are mostly herbivorous and primarily eat wild grasses and other vegetation, such as berries and agricultural crops.
Clover, alfalfa, dandelion, and coltsfoot are some of a groundhog’s favourite foods.
The also eat grubs, grasshoppers, insects, snails and other small animals but are much less into eating other animals unlike many other Sciuridae.
More like squirrels in this respect, they also have been observed sitting up eating nuts such as shagbark hickory – although they don’t store their snacks for future use.
The first Groundhog Day was celebrated officially at Gobler’s Knob, Punxsutawney on February 2, 1887.
Local newspaper editor Clymer Freas came up with the idea after saying that Phil was America’s official groundhog meteorologist.