Groundhog
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- This is about the rodent. For other uses see groundhog (disambiguation) and woodchuck (disambiguation)
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| Marmota monax (Linnaeus, 1758) |
The groundhog (Marmota monax), also known as the woodchuck, land beaver, or the whistlepig, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. Most marmots live in rocky and mountainous areas, but the woodchuck is a lowland creature. It is widely distributed in North America; for example, it is found in Alaska, Alabama, and Georgia. In the west it is found only in Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia and northern Washington.
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[edit] Anatomy and Behavior
Groundhogs are typically 40 to 65 cm (17 to 26 in) long (including a 15 cm tail) and weigh 2 to 4 kg. In areas with fewer natural predators and large quantities of alfalfa, they can grow to 80 cm (32 in) and 14 kg (30 lb). They can live up to six years in the wild, and ten years in captivity.
The groundhog is one of a small number of species that have grown greatly in numbers since the arrival of European settlers in North America, since the clearing of forests provided it with much more suitable habitat. It prefers open country and the edges of woodland. As a consequence, it is a familiar animal to many people in the United States and Canada.
Groundhogs are excellent burrowers, using burrows for sleeping, rearing young, and hibernating. The burrows generally have two exits, and the groundhog rarely ventures far from one of them for safety. While preferring to flee from would-be predators, the groundhog is known to viciously defend its burrow when invaded by predators such as skunks, foxes, weasels or domestic dogs. It can inflict quite a bit of damage with its two large incisors and front claws, especially when the predator is at a disadvantage inside the burrow.
The Wall Street Journal quotes wildlife expert Richard Thomas as calculating that the average groundhog moves approximately 1 m³ (35 cubic feet), or 320 kg (700 pounds), of dirt when digging a burrow.
Usually groundhogs breed in their second year, but a small percentage may breed as yearlings. The breeding season extends from early March to middle or late April, following hibernation. A mated pair will remain in the same den throughout the 28-32 day gestation period. As birth of the young approaches in April or May, the male will leave the den. One litter is produced annually, usually containing 2-6 blind, naked and helpless young. Young groundhogs are weaned and ready to seek their own dens at five to six weeks of age.
[edit] Popular culture
In the United States and Canada, there is a Groundhog Day celebration that gives the groundhog some added popularity.
The name woodchuck has nothing etymologically to do with wood. It stems from an Algonquian name for the animal (possibly Narragansett), wuchak. The apparent relationship between the two words has led to the common tongue twister: "How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? — A woodchuck would chuck no amount of wood since a woodchuck can't chuck wood". Because of the rhyming words it is possible for the teller of the folksy tale to use personalized variations in the second verse, examples include:
- "As much wood as a woodchuck would if a woodchuck could chuck wood."[1]
- "A woodchuck would chuck as much wood as a woodchuck could chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood."[2]
[edit] Video
- A groundhog feeding (file info)
- Problems seeing the videos? See media help.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Jackie Silberg (2003), The Learning Power of Laughter, Page 23
- ^ Laura Rountree Smith (1923), Two Hundred Games that Teach, Page 63
[edit] References
- Rodent Specialist Group (1996). Marmota monax. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006.
[edit] External links
- Hinterland Who's Who ("Canadian Wildlife Service: Mammals: Woodchuck")
- Missouri Conservation Commission ("Woodchuck")
