It’s Groundhog Day - and Vancouver Island Violet saw her shadow this morning, before swiftly returning to hibernation, mirroring what her colleague in Nova Scotia, Shubenacadie Sam, saw - indicating another six more weeks of winter.

In Ontario, Wiarton Willie told the crowd he saw nothing, and is predicting an early spring.

Punxsutawney Phil woke up and saw his shadow this morning, calling for 6 more weeks of winter at Gobbler’s Knob in Pennsylvania.

According to a post on the Marmot Recovery Foundation's Facebook page, in addition to getting Van Isle Violet's wintery prognostication, the marmots were given a quick health check and regrouped.

Marmots are paired to maximize genetic diversity within the very small population of this critically endangered species.

Adult marmots that emerge from hibernation together are more likely to breed than if they are introduced after they have already woken up.