JoAnn Runowicz, age 10, of Palatine, I11., for her question:
DO WOODCHUCKS REALLY EAT WOOD?
How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck chuck wood? That's one of world's favorite tongue twisters. In it the writer wonders what might happen if a woodchuck had the ability to toss or throw out bits of wood. The animal can toss pieces of wood, nor does he include wood in his diet.
A woodchuck belongs to the squirrel family and is also called the ground hog. He is actually a type of marmot. In a few weeks, on February 2, the woodchuck becomes king for a day when much of the world celebrates Ground Hog Day. According to an old superstition, you will be able to tell when spring will come by watching what a woodchuck does on that day.
The old story says that if on that day the animal comes out of his underground home when the sun is shining, he will become frightened by seeing his own shadow and he will return to his nest. This is supposed to extend the winter for another six weeks. If it is an overcast day without sunshine on February 2, the woodchuck will not see his shadow and come out of the ground to enjoy an early spring that year.
A woodchuck builds complex burrows that contain a number of different compartments. He comes out to eat soft plants such as alfalfa and clover. Definitely no wood is included on his menu. Often the woodchuck gains a reputation of being a pest because many times he will find lots of his favorite type of greens among a farmer's crops.
When a woodchuck goes out to look for food, he first sits up on his haunches at the entrance to his burrow. He looks and listens for any sign of danger. This habit makes the woodchuck an easy target for hunters.
The woodchuck lives in Canada and in the eastern and Midwestern parts of the United States. He grows to be about two feet long, includinghis bushy tail, and has a flat, broad head.
The common ground hog of North America has coarse fur of gray on the upper parts of its body and yellow orange fur on the under parts. Woodchucks are animals that hibernate or sleep through the winter. They eat large amounts of food each fall to carry them through the long sleep. The extra food is changed to fat in their bodies. In the spring, the female woodchuck usually gives birth to fouror five babies.
Marmots are the largest members of the squirrel family and can be found in Europe, western North America and in much of Asia. They are rodents, as are beavers, chipmunks and mice. Their relative, the woodchuck, is a kind of marmot that lives in open areas. Marmots live in colonies on mountain slopes.