Mayor Bloomberg with Staten Island Chuck on February 2, 2011

Forget the Ice Storm, Staten Island Chuck Says 'Spring is Coming!'

Features | Feb 2, 2011

During an early-morning ceremony attended by city dignitaries despite a thick coating of ice from the latest winter storm, Staten Island Chuck did not see his shadow, and predicted that spring is on the way. Chuck's rival Punxsutawney Phil also predicted an early spring.

Icicles hung from Chuck's house at the Staten Island Zoo and workers sprinkled ice on the pathways. Huddling under an umbrella to keep off the freezing rain, Mayor Michael Bloomberg held Staten Island Chuck firmly aloft. The mayor wore gloves, either because he was bitten by the whistle pig in 2009 or because of the cold.

Folklore tells us that if a groundhog sees his shadow on February 2, he goes back inside his burrow to hibernate for six more weeks. No shadow means spring is on the way.

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