Vermilion, Ohio hosts an annual “Woollybear Festival.” It started in 1973 and was in part came about because of Cleveland’s longtime weather forecaster Dick Goddard. As with the famous groundhog Punxsutawney Phil, people celebrate the woolly bear’s winter prediction and the weather folklore. The legend’s popularity has spread because of several festivals honoring the caterpillars. according to Ohio State University Extension’s Joe Boggs. He compared the brown spots on 15 specimens to make a winter prediction…which turned out to be correct. If the woolly bear moves north, then it is likely to experience mild winter. Basically, it states that if it’s crawling in a southerly direction, then it’s trying to escape winter’s cold from the north. And the longer the winter, the more “woolier” your coat.Īnother version deals with the woolly caterpillar’s direction of travel. The opposite end will be darker, and the winter’s end will be colder.Īccording to the folklore, the 13 segments of the caterpillar’s body correspond to the 13 weeks of winter. The beginning of winter will be more difficult if the head is darker than the other end. The position of the longest darkest band can also indicate the part of winter that will be the coldest or hardest. On the other hand, the longer the middle brown band, the milder the winter will be. It’s important to note that the black varies not only in each season, but in different areas, too.Īccording to the legend, the longer the woolly bear’s black bands, the more severe the winter will be–longer, colder and snowier. There are actually two versions to the folklore about the woolly caterpillar.Īccording to some theories, the amount of black on the woolly caterpillar in the fall is indicative of the severity of the winter ahead. In search of winter hibernation, the caterpillar will often leave their plants, which are usually a range of grasses or weeds. These caterpillars are known for their fuzzy nature and black bandings. This saying is very popular in New England and the Midwest as winter draws closer each year. One famous bit of folklore claims that the stripe on the back of a woolly caterpillar indicates the severity of the upcoming winter. These ideas can be quite entertaining, but they really are based on other factors.Another part of the folklore in which the caterpillar is crawling predicts winter.It is said that the darker the black band, the more severe the winter will become. Folklore has it that the caterpillar’s stripes can predict the coming winter.
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