Groundhog Facts That Are Very Interesting

Groundhogs get their 15 minutes of fame every year, and then most people forget about them. Groundhog Day, observed every year on February 2, is a unique American holiday in which people look to these mammals to foretell the weather: if the groundhog sees its shadow on that day, legend has it that winter will last six more weeks. But, aside from that, what else do we know about these annual celebrities? Here are a few interesting facts.

Squirrels are connected to them.

Groundhogs (Marmota monax) are a kind of rodent related to squirrels (Marmota monax). Richard Thorington, curator of mammals at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., describes them as “huge ground squirrels.”

What Do Groundhogs Eat, on the other hand, have a wide range and can be found all over North America.

“[Groundhogs] are the most widely distributed of all the marmots, [with a range stretching] as far south as northern Alabama to northern Canada—and some are even found in Alaska,” says Stam Zervanos, a retired biology professor at Pennsylvania State University in Reading who has studied groundhogs extensively.

They’re taking the place of hedgehogs.

While there are numerous theories about the origins of Groundhog Day, it is supposed to be related to the Germanic tradition of Candlemas Day, a Christian feast day. A sunny Candlemas Day, according to legend, predicts a longer winter. However, in Europe, the animal of choice was usually a hedgehog or a badger. It’s possible that it was a fluke that it became the groundhog’s responsibility in the United States.

“The Europeans didn’t have any hedgehogs or badgers to blame when they moved over here, so I guess the groundhog got it just by being here and being a good size,” Thorington speculates. “He was tasked with predicting whether or not winter would arrive.”

There is a movement to have robots replace them.

Some animal rights organizations have long opposed Groundhog Day, claiming that these shy animals should not be placed on display or have their natural hibernation cycle disrupted. PETA is now advocating for the replacement of groundhogs with robot groundhogs that can detect shadows using artificial intelligence.

The term ‘Woodchuck’ has nothing to do with the wood industry.

Groundhogs are known by a variety of names, including “whistle-pig” due to their proclivity for making short, high-pitched whistles. Land beavers are another term for them, but woodchuck is their most well-known moniker.

The name woodchuck, surprisingly, has nothing to do with wood. It’s believed to be a combination of the Native American words wejack, woodshaw, or woodchoock. It’s possible that it comes from the Algonquian (or possibly Narragansett) word for the animal, wuchak.

Other versions believe it’s a mash-up of the Cree word otchek, which means “fishing,” and the Ojibwe word ojiig, which means “fisher” or “marten,” which Europeans adopted and misapplied to the groundhog.

What is the maximum amount of wood a woodchuck can chuck? There appears to be none.

They construct magnificent residences.

The length of a groundhog’s burrow can range from eight to 66 feet, with many exits and chambers.

According to Zervanos, their burrows might have multiple storeys. “They have a hibernation burrow and a summer burrow where they can come out more easily.”

Defecation facilities, sometimes known as bathrooms, are included in their burrows.

Groundhogs, in certain situations, have multiple burrows and travel from one to the next.

They are considered pests by farmers.

Those excellent digging abilities make for great burrows, but they can also cause major issues for farmers.

“They dig quite extensive holes,” Zervanos explains, “and tractors can break an axle [driving over them].”

Furthermore, because the animals are herbivores who love tender, young greens, they can cause havoc by raiding crops.

In the eyes of a groundhog, soybeans, corn, and home gardens are all feasts. Some people, though, are more discriminating.

“They’re picky,” adds Thorington of the Smithsonian. “They’ll go for your nicest cabbages and stuff you have out there,” says the narrator.

They’re solitary.

Groundhogs, unlike some of its cousins, such as prairie dogs, are essentially loners who only seek out their own type to mate. (See “Video: Why Do Prairie Dogs Do ‘The Wave?'” for more information.)

“They’re quite solitary for most of the year,” says Penn State’s Zervanos, “so the male has no idea where the female is most of the year except when they’re ready to mate.”

Even their mother obligation to their children is brief.

“The young are nursed by their mother, and after they’ve been weaned, they tend to go off on their own.” “They’re about as asocial as it gets,” Thorington says.

They truly sleep when they sleep.

Groundhogs are known as “real hibernators,” as they go into a dormant state from late fall to late winter or early spring, in which their body temperature and heart rate drop drastically.

“True hibernators may lower their body temperature below 20 degrees Celsius [68 degrees Fahrenheit],” Zervanos explains. “Bears, for example, only lower their body temperature to 30 degrees Celsius [86 degrees Fahrenheit] from 37 degrees Celsius [98.7 degrees Fahrenheit].”

“Any true hibernator can lower their heart rate to around five beats per minute, and their body temperature can drop to [41 degrees Fahrenheit],” he adds.

However, according to Zervanos, who has spent a lot of time studying groundhog hibernation, it isn’t as simple as people think.

“Hibernation is not a deep slumber that lasts throughout winter,” Zervanos explains. Instead, he claims, groundhogs fall into “torpor” when their body temperature dips below five degrees Celsius. They’ll do this for a week, then wake up for three or four days before going back to sleep.

“During the hibernation season, they do this around 12 to 20 times,” Zervanos explains.

They do, however, get up early for love.

Groundhogs hibernate for around three months, beginning in late autumn and ending when the weather is still frigid.

But it turns out they have a compelling incentive to get out of bed. Male groundhogs have been observed waking up early in order to gain a jump start on reproduction.

“The males come out and begin to prepare for the mating season,” explains Zervanos, which begins in February with a reconnaissance of their turf and house calls to female burrows.

“In most cases, a male has a territory that includes a number of female burrows. He adds, “And there’s some competition for that land.” “They strive to defend that region, going from burrow to burrow to see if that female is still around.”

The male returns to his burrow to sleep for another month or so until early March, when it’s time to mate, after determining where his possible partners are.

They have a fantastic sense of timing.

Groundhogs have an extraordinary ability to predict the future.

Groundhogs must know when to come out of hibernation and mate in order for their progeny to have the highest chance of surviving.

“Most matings take place in early March during a ten-day period,” explains Zervanos. “If they’re born too late, they won’t be able to gain enough weight for the winter, and if they’re born too early, the female won’t be able to feed them.”

In other words, the window of opportunity is quite narrow, and the cunning woodchuck must make the most of it. With those instincts, it might be prudent to entrust winter forecasts to the groundhogs.