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Ocelot II

(126,563 posts)

1. The stripes on woolly-bear caterpillars are said to be a sign - haven't seen any of those guys lately.

Reply to FirstLight (Original post)

Sun Jul 27, 2025, 12:41 PM

Jul 27

They are the larvae of the Isabella tiger moth. The belief is that if the brown stripe is wide, winter weather will be mild, and if it's narrow, the winter will be severe, but there's no scientific basis for the belief. We used to find these caterpillars fairly often, though, and make our winter predictions. But since this is Minnesota, the winters always suck anyhow.

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FirstLight Walleye beemerphill

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What are some of your telltale signs that it's gonna be a bad winter...? Do they even matter anymore...? [View all] FirstLight Jul 27 OP

The stripes on woolly-bear caterpillars are said to be a sign - haven't seen any of those guys lately. Ocelot II Jul 27 #1

I'm sure it's just a myth. But one year I saw those caterpillars with very small stripes and some of them with no stripe Walleye Jul 27 #2

awwww... FirstLight Jul 27 #3

Here in Delaware if we had a heavy snow by Thanksgiving or early in December Walleye Jul 27 #4

used to be we got hit by mid October, mayyybey a little weak thru Christmas... FirstLight Jul 27 #5

when the 110+ heat hasn't broken before October mike_c Jul 27 #6

I hear ya... FirstLight Jul 27 #9

Birds start going S earlier than usual. We live in the Mississippi Valley (STLMO), so we see the numerous SWBTATTReg Jul 27 #7

I bet! ...a birder's dream! FirstLight Jul 27 #8

Yes, it's really neat. I'll see flocks of storks, geese, ducks, and numerous other birds, and seeing the SWBTATTReg Jul 27 #10