An Almanac Minute: Woolly Worm

What does it mean when you just don't see any woolies? I usually see them around the garage every year, but this year none? I am located in Northeast Iowa, lots of box elder bugs no wooly bears?

Having grown up and lived in the mountains of Western NC, I've always heard since I was a kid, that where the band's start and stop tells more. For instance, recently I have seen wooly worms with a small black band at the head with brown covering the rest (3/4) of its body. This means that winter will start off stormy with a lot of snow, then turn mild for the rest of the winter.

One method of telling the coming winter never fails....the indians used to watch the whiteman gathering firewood!

The only wooly bears I've seen this fall have absolutely NO stripes! The almanac forecasts differ from the forecasts on my TV. Is the wooly bear the deciding factor?

Watch the squirrels! Around here in Illinois, they have been busier than usual, storing up buried foodstuff in prep for what, by this indicator, will be a very rough winter — not at all like our last one!

My wooley worms are almost all black. Barely a hint of brown. This is the second year of an incredibly abundant acorn crop. Last year was very mild though. Seems to be a medium amount of squirrel activity. I have 19 squirrels that live in the yard all the time. Cincinnati, Ohio

I really never truly understood this little creature. I saw one of these at my daughters near Pittsbugh this year . . it was all black. Wear lots of clothes.