Weather folklore tells us that the black stripes predict a cold and snowy winter, while the burnt orange stripes represent a mild winter.
This year, we decided to ask our viewers to become a part of the story. We asked you to look in your backyards and parks and find out what the woolly worms was predicting for this year's winter in the Tri-state.
We had 911 people respond to our Woolly Worm Poll. Here is the results of what they found the Woolly Worm was predicting.
COLOR: | VOTES | % |
| Orange - mild | 88 Votes | 9.6% |
| Black - cold | 387 Votes | 42.5% |
| Black, small orange stripes- Cold with mild spells | 211 Votes | 23.2% |
| Orange, small black stripes - Mild with cold spells | 225 Votes | 24.7 |
Almost half of our poll participants reported finding all black woolly worms. Add that to those who found black woolly worms with small orange stripes and two-thirds of the woolly worms in our area are saying that we will see a colder and snowier winter than normal.
We even had a picture of a white woolly worm sent in. You could call these the cousins of the typical black and rust-orange woolly worm.
The white woolly worm is the caterpillar for the Yellow Woolly Worm Moth or the Virginia Tiger Moth. Weather folklore says that if you find an all white woolly worm that you are in store for a snowy winter.
They are typically yellow in color as caterpillars, but occasionally show up as white. They can look like little white puff balls.
Each woolly worm is made up of 13 different sections which is believed to represent the 13 weeks of winter. They have three sets of legs and even though they have small eyes, they make their way around mainly by touch.
An interesting fact about woolly worms is their ability to survive being frozen in temperatures as low as -90F. Their bodies have the ability to produce an organic antifreeze of glycerol and other chemicals that protects the interior of their cells in addition to their bristly hair.
This renders them the ability to be literally frozen in ice and survive. Live worms have emerged from a cube of ice to resume normal activity
So, despite the forecast for a cold and snowy winter, the woolly worm will be just fine. When spring returns, it will emerge as an Isabella Tiger Moth.
