Milltown Mel Definitely Won't See His Shadow This Year

New Jersey's most famous weather-predicting rodent has seen his shadow for the last time and efforts to replace him are not going well. Milltown Mel, the borough's groundhog-in-residence, died days before Groundhog Day in 2022. He was the third Mel but efforts to find a fourth hit a major wall after then-Gov. Phil Murphy vetoed a bill last week that would have loosened rules on importing the animals, the New York Times reports. Murphy cited concerns about rabies, saying he couldn't approve an exemption to the state's ban on bringing in animals from states where the disease is widespread. He added that towns don't have to scrap Groundhog Day traditions altogether, but offered no specific alternative.

Milltown, a central New Jersey borough of about 7,000, has been without a functioning Mel since state officials seized a baby, known as a "chuckling," that handler Russell Einbinder brought from Tennessee to be the next star. The animal was confiscated over fears of an exotic rabies strain. Einbinder says lining up a replacement now is nearly impossible: groundhogs are hibernating this time of year, breeding programs are dwindling, and you can't just grab a passing groundhog. "You can't just get one off the street," he says. "You have to have one since birth."

Assembly member Sterley Stanley, a sponsor of the vetoed bill, says he's still hunting for a "creative solution" to revive a tradition that once drew crowds of up to 1,000 to watch Mel emerge from a hollowed-out stump outside a funeral home. Borrowing a zoo groundhog has been floated but hasn't worked out. For now, the Groundhog Palace in Milltown is empty, and the tuxedoed Milltown Wranglers who once escorted Mel on Feb. 2 are left hoping the town's forecast-predicting mascot isn't gone for good. Organizers haven't said whether they plan to hold an alternative, groundhog-free event, NJ.com reports.