As legend would have it today is Groundhog day when a small(ish) furry animal predicts to residents if they are in for six more weeks of winter. While this is a north American tradition it seems to have its roots in Europe. Given the poor start to the year lets hope the various ceremonies around the world don’t see a shadow or if they do it’s a region forecast that won’t affect the UK.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groundhog_Day

http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20100201/sc_livescience/punxsutawneyphilthegroundhogbehindthemyth