Paul Boily, age 15, of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, for his question:
What sort of animal is a Groundhog?
The name suggests a pig like animal who lives in the ground. It is not very flattering or even fair because there is nothing piggish about the groundhog. But he does live in underground burrows. The early settlers named him the groundhog, but people later began calling him the woodchuck. The groundhog and the woodchuck are one and the same animal. But sad to say, few of us rarely get a chance to meet him. However, on February 2, old timers and cheerful weathermen are likely to remind us that he exists.
We think of the squirrels as those frisky, bushy tailed fellows who scamper through the trees, busily hiding caches of nuts. But they are not the only members of this family. Several squirrels gave up tree climbing ages ago and set up housekeeping in underground burrows. One of these ground squirrels is the famous prairie dog who lives in large underground towns of elaborate tunnels. In such dusty surroundings, obviously a big bushy tail would be difficult to keep clean and fluffy. This may explain why ground squirrels tend to have shorter, non bushy fur. Since they live on and under the ground, they also can afford to be heavier than their more agile, tree climbing relatives.
Our bulkiest ground squirrel is a marmot alias the groundhog, alias the woodchuck. He is a fat fellow, maybe weighing ten pounds and measuring over a foot long plus a stubby tail hardly worth mentioning. He is a slow, rather lazy character and very shy. His favorite pose is sitting erect on his back legs and surveying the scenery with a dreamy expression. However, he has a well hidden door nearby, and at the sound of possible danger he quickly pops down his secret burrow.
His lazy day is spent between dining on the local vegetation, and basking long hours in the sunshine. He loves warmth, and in the fall he hibernates below ground to avoid the cold weather. As a rule, he shares his hibernation den with four to 14 relatives all curled up in fat furry balls to keep each other warm. The burrow opening is plugged with a foot or so of dirt and straw to seal out the frost.
The woodchuck, alias the groundhog of Canada and New England emerges with the first breath of spring. American Indians informed the early settlers that he comes
outdoors to survey the weather on Groundhog Day which is February 2. If the day is sunny and he sees his shadow, he expects a spell of nasty spring weather to follow, so he scoots back down for another six weeks of snoozing or so the story goes. Modern scientists doubt that the woodchuck is such a talented prophet and they doubt that he knows or cares about making his appearances on Groundhog Day. If by chance he does appear on schedule, qualified experts suspect that his purpose is to glance around, hoping to spot a lady friend to share the early spring courting season.
The woodchuck home has a front door rimmed with a pile of dirt, a secret door hidden in the bushes and a third door that drops straight down into the burrow. He digs out elaborate tunnels and chambers, including a bedroom with a grassy nest and a toilet which he keeps very clean. Sometime in April, Mrs. Woodchuck gives birth to four or five naked and helpless babes, weighing one ounce apiece. In May, they are ready to venture outdoors, and by fall they are ready to leave home.