| • Science | • People | • Locations | • Timeline |
| Woodchuck or Groundhog | ||||||||||||||||
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| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||||
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| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||||
| Marmota monax (Linnaeus, 1758) |
Woodchucks are typically 40–65cm long (including a 15-cm tail) and weigh 2–4 kilograms.
The Woodchuck 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 forestThis article is about forests as a massing of trees. For other uses of the word, see Forest (disambiguation). A forest is an area with a high density of trees (or, historically, an area set aside for hunting). Forests can be found in all regions capable os provided it with much suitable habitatA habitat (from the Latin for "it inhabits") is the place where a particular organism usually lives or grows. A biotope is the smallest possible geographic region of a habitat. A biome is the set of flora and fauna which live in a habitat and occupy a cer. 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 CanadaCanada historically the Dominion of Canada is the second-largest, and northernmost, country in the world. It is a decentralized federation of 10 provinces and 3 territories, governed as a constitutional monarchy, and formed in 1867 through an act of Confe.
Woodchucks are excellent burrowers, and they use burrows for sleeping, rearing young, and hibernationHibernation is a state of regulated hypothermia, lasting several days or weeks that allows animals to conserve energy during the winter. During hibernation animals slow their metabolism to very low levels, with body temperature and breathing rates lowered.
In the United States and Canada, there is a Groundhog DayFor the movie of the same name see: Groundhog Day (movie Groundhog Day is a festival celebrated in the USA and Canada on February 2. The groundhog tradition stems from similar beliefs associated with Candlemas Day and Hedgehog Day. Though the date is ofte celebration that gives the Woodchuck some added popularity.
The name woodchuck has nothing etymologically to do with wood. It stems from an Algonquian name for the animal (possibly Narraganset), wuchak. This confusion led to the common tongue-twister, "How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? — As much wood as a woodchuck would chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood."
The Wall Street Journal quotes wildlife expert Richard Thomas as calculating that the average Woodchuck moves approximately 35 cubic feet (1 m³), or 700 pounds (320 kg), of dirt when digging a burrow.