Step aside, Punxsutawney Phil. Winter in the Florida Keys is up to a “mollusk meteorologist.”
As the famed groundhog reveals his prediction for the rest of winter in Pennsylvania on Groundhog Day, Monday, Feb. 2, a pink-lipped conch will make a prediction of his own at Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters in Marathon.
In what has now become an annual tradition, it won’t be Phil’s shadow that determines whether “chilly” temps (read: 50 degrees, not the frozen tundras of the north) will persist in the Keys. Instead, a conch living in one of the aquarium’s touch tanks will emerge in front of local dignitaries, guests and aquarium staff.
If he sees his shadow and “flips,” we’re in for another few weeks of what the rest of the country would call “spring” or even “early summer.” If he doesn’t, maybe those sweltering sunny days will return a bit sooner.
The aquarium’s celebration includes free admission from 7 to 8:30 a.m. to watch the meteorologist’s dramatic emergence. Live music and free snacks and beverages will complete the morning.
“Tell everyone, and bring your friends,” said Aquarium Encounters owner Ben Daughtry. Just like their northern companion ceremony, he and his staff will be decked out in the traditional top hats for GroundConch Day – and it’s a celebration they hope will grow bigger every year.
“I might even be able to see my breath,” he joked, referencing the unseasonably cool temps in the forecast over the weekend.
While conch frequents the menus of many Florida Keys eateries, the meat is harvested in other Caribbean waters, not in the U.S. island chain. The hard-shelled herbivore is protected and listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.
