Hobbies And Interests
Habitat
The woodchuck, or groundhog, is prevalent in many parts of the U.S.A. and Canada. It is especially common ranging from Alabama to Alaska, Maine, and northern Canada. Woodchucks thrive in grassy meadows, pastures, wooded forests and regions with plentiful farms and gardens. They live beneath the ground, digging burrows marked by dirt mounds that can be traced to tunnels, the ceilings of which are raised above the dirt's surface. Woodchucks build nests within these tunnels that they line with dry grass and leaves. It is here that they raise young, hide from predators and hibernate.
Anatomy
The woodchuck is a stout and stubby rodent that can grow to be the size of a small cat. Woodchucks have short, strong legs that they use to dig burrows. Their fur ranges from dark brown to red, its coloration used for camouflage and varying depending on habitat. Woodchucks' feet and furry tails are usually covered in dark brown or black fur. These rodents have 22 teeth, two of which are long incisors.
Food
Woodchucks are herbivores that consume primarily grasses, seeds and flowers. Plants that constitute the staple of their diets include dandelion, golden rod, daisy and clover. If these foods are not in season, woodchucks consume bark, buds from other plants, and twigs that they harvest from dogwood, cherry and sumac trees. Woodchucks will eat vegetables when they can access them and have been known to be garden pests.
Behavior
Woodchucks are active in the summer after waking from winter hibernation, which begins in October and ends in March. During their active months, woodchucks store fat for the next season's hibernation. They spend their time gathering food while avoiding predators. Woodchucks are cautious creatures that survey the area by peaking out of their burrows before venturing into the open. After woodchucks have regained 35 to 40 percent of their body weight that they lose during hibernation, they are ready to repeat the cycle.