WOODCHUCK

also called Groundhog, or Whistle-pig (Marmota monax), stout-bodied marmot of the family Sciuridae (order Rodentia). Woodchucks are black-footed, reddish-brown or brown animals, ranging from 42 to 51 cm (17 to 20 inches) in length, with 10- to 15-centimetre (4- to 6-inch) tails. They weigh between 2 and 6 kg (4 and 14 pounds). Found from the eastern and central United States northward across Canada and into Alaska, woodchucks are animals of open fields and woodland edges, where they feed mainly on low green vegetation. They are mainly terrestrial but are good swimmers and climbers. They feed heavily in summer, storing fat to see them through their winter hibernation. They are also excellent diggers, constructing a burrow with a main entrance and an escape tunnel. Woodchucks are solitary except during the spring, when litters of four to five young are born. The young stay with the mother for about two months. Woodchucks are sometimes destructive to gardens and pasture lands. They are edible, and their abandoned burrows provide shelter for rabbits, foxes, and other small animals. According to popular legend in the United States, the groundhog emerges from hibernation each year on February 2, designated as Groundhog Day, and the duration of winter may be foretold from that day's conditions: the presence of the groundhog's shadow warns of continued cold weather, while its absence signals an early spring.