From the Weather Channel

“The word from a woolly worm named Lickety Split is that western North Carolina should break out the winter coats and invest in snow shovels.

Lickety Split beat seven other worms Saturday in the finals at the 35th annual Woolly Worm Festival in Banner Elk.  The victory meant the worm would be the official forecaster for the upcoming winter.   The caterpillars have black and brown bands, with one color sometimes dominating the other.  Folklore says black is associated with snowy weather, while brown is an indicator of mild conditions.

The bands on Lickety Split indicate a call for snow and below average temperatures for the first five weeks of winter.  The next six weeks will be average to below normal, with unusual cold in the 12th week of winter and more snow predicted for the final week.

According to officials the festival winners and their predictions have an 84.5% accuracy rate.”