Milltown Mel, New Jersey's weather-predicting groundhog, died just days before Groundhog Day, leaving Milltown without a groundhog and without a festivity.
"We Wranglers are sad to report that Milltown Mel recently crossed over the rainbow bridge," read a Facebook post on the groundhog's page. "Considering the average lifespan of a Groundhog is about 3 years, that is not such a shock, but Mel left us at a tough time of year, when most of his fellow groundhogs are hibernating."
Those wishing to know if it will be a long winter can watch Punxsutawney Phil's prediction as he comes out of his burrow in Gobbler's Knob, Pennsylvania on Wednesday.