Punxsutawney Phil Becomes Proud Papa of 2 Baby Groundhogs
It's big day in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. The city's population has just grown by two. That's because Punxsutawney's most famous resident — Punxsutawney Phil — is now a dad for the first time.
It was announced that Phil and a female groundhog named Phyllis had two babies on Wednesday, March 27.
Shared on the Punxsutawney Phil Facebook page, the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club excitedly announced the new additions.
"We have Babies!! The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club is very excited to announce that Phil and Phyllis have given birth to two healthy baby Groundhogs!" they wrote in the post.
The babies are currently with their parents at the zoo in the Punxsutawney Memorial Library, they added. Patrons of the library can view the babies through a viewing window.
Speaking with CBS News, Tom Dunkel, the president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club's Inner Circle, explained that the birth was a complete surprise.
"When we went in to feed them their fresh fruits and vegetables, we found Phyllis with two little baby groundhogs. It was very unexpected, we had no idea that she was pregnant," Dunkel explained.
The births mark a huge milestone for the club — and for Phil too. Dunkel said that in more than a century they haven't had a baby groundhog. He said the club is "stoked" about the change.
"Today I took my cane down to the borrow so I could talk with Phil," Dunkel told the news outlet. "With that cane, I have the ability to speak Groundhogese. So I took the cane down today to talk with Phil for a little bit."
"He's besides himself," he added. "He's 138 years old and never had a child so he picked late in life to start a family," he joked. Well there's no time like the present to become a dad.
Dunkel added that mom Phyllis is resting and doing well. They have yet to pick out names for the babies, but that will come in time.
"He says as soon as they figure that out he will let us know and then we will let the world know," Dunkel said.
While a surprise pregnancy is never on anyone's bucket list, Dunkel said that so far Phil's many admirers have been tickled by the news.
"It's fun and it's such good news and fun news in times when we are getting a lot of bad news so we are happy that this is unfolding for Phil and Phyllis," he said.
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