weather prediction.?

[majorcatfish]

if the wooly bears are correct looks like it might be a mild winter...
The Legend of the Woolly Worm
According to folk wisdom, when the brown bands on fall woolly bears are narrow, it means a harsh winter is coming. The wider the brown band, the milder the winter will be.

who else has them and how are they predicting your weather ?

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

i haven't found any yet but i'm sure when i do some cleanup i will find a few.

 

[Beekissed]

I found an all black one...does that say anything? I sure hope it means a very cold winter...we need it here.

 

[Carol Dee]

DH just asked me the other day what an all brown one meant. Pretty mild?

 

[bobm]

I haven't seen a wooly bear caterpilar since we moved here several years ago. So, what does that mean ? I have only seen 2 small white butterflies each several weeks apart this year.

 

[majorcatfish]

I found an all black one...does that say anything? I sure hope it means a very cold winter...we need it here.

dw talked to one of her aunts in wellsville ny they had a hard frost all ready their garden is toast for the year, their woolly bears were all black as well. they want a very cold winter as well< so they can sell all their carhartt's

DH just asked me the other day what an all brown one meant. Pretty mild?

well "they say mild" but really what does it mean...?

anyone here have a 2016-2017 farmers almanac and what does it say ?

 

[thistlebloom]

This is just me thinking out loud, ... but aren't there different varieties of fuzzy caterpillars that would be different colors anyway?

 

[PennyJo]

I have the farmers almanac here

 

[thistlebloom]

I was motivated to find an answer to my question and found this site which is dedicated to the caterpillars of northern Illinois, but of general interest to anybody who wants to look at closeups of many colorful caterpillars.
And yes, found the Wooly Bear (Isabella Tiger moth) and the true story about the bands. It seems every time they molt, the new instar has a wider orange band. There's also much variation from caterpillar to caterpillar.
So, I'm sorry to deflate the old wives tale, but there ya go.

 

[Smart Red]

Haven't seen a wooly bear yet. I'm hoping for a milder, snowier winter, myself. Milder around here means zero or above. I really hate those sub-zero days with wind chills that would frighten an Inuit into staying home. The only thing worse is mild enough to ice everything. I can dress for the worst cold, but ice means dangerous driving conditions for everyone.