Notes

1. What is a Groundhog?
The groundhog (Marmota Monax), also known as a woodchuck, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. The groundhog is a lowland creature of North America; it is found through much of the Eastern United States, across Canada and into Alaska.
2. Facts About Groundhogs
A Minnesota groundhog has a life span of six years in the wild regions. If they are held in captivity, groundhogs have been known to survive for a period as long as fourteen years. Their common predators have always been foxes, bears, dogs, eagles, cougars, snakes and wolves. Snakes attack the young of groundhogs by entering their burrows easily.

Groundhogs are mostly herbivorous in nature. They eat wild grass mainly and other types of vegetation that includes numerous agricultural crops and berries. They also feed on insects, grubs and snails. They have been known to eat nuts, much in a similar manner as the squirrels. However, they do not bury the nuts for future consumption like the squirrels do.
A groundhog is a competent swimmer despite its appearance which is heavy-bodied. It can also climb a tree quite easily if it has to escape its predators or when it has to survey its surroundings. It will always prefer to retreat to its burrow when it is threatened. When its burrow is infiltrated, it will defend itself quite tenaciously with its front claws and its couple of large incisors.
Minneapolis groundhog is usually a territorial animal and it will fight its way out while establishing dominance. It is always alert when it is busy feeding when it is out of its burrow. It is generally a common sight to see groundhogs standing on their hind feet when they are looking out for danger. When they sense danger or when they are threatened, they whistle in a high pitched sound to alert the remainder of their colony. This is the reason why they are also called whistle pigs. They squeal a lot when they are busy fighting or when they are caught by their predators. They make funny noises such as low barks when they get injured. These sounds are made by the grinding of their teeth. When they get scared, the hair on their tails will stand erect, making them look like hair brushes.

Groundhogs usually breed during their second year and in rare cases, some of them may breed even in their first year. The season for breeding will be around March and April in the spring. This is the time for their hibernation. A pair that has mated will remain in a burrow or the same den for the period of one month gestation. The male will leave the den as the time approaches for the female to give birth. A litter is produced once every year and it will contain an average of six young groundhogs. They are weaned for a period of six weeks and following that, they get ready to look out for their own burrows. The mothers will introduce their young breed to the wild surroundings once the fur is grown on their bodies and when they can see properly. They motivate the young groundhogs to imitate the behavior of the grownups.