The groundhog (Marmota monax) is a lowland rodent of North America. It was first scientifically described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. These adorable animals play an important role maintaining healthy soil in woodland and plain areas. They are considered crucial habitat engineers. Groundhogs are also extremely intelligent animals forming complex social networks, able to understand social behavior, form kinship with their young, understand and communicate threats through whistling, and work cooperatively to solve tasks such as burrowing.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
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FolivoreIn zoology, a folivore is a herbivore that specializes in eating leaves. Mature leaves contain a high proportion of hard-to-digest cellulose, less ...
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GraminivoreIn zoology, a graminivore (not to be confused with a granivore) is an herbivorous animal that feeds primarily on grass. Graminivory is a form of g...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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FossorialA fossorial animal is one adapted to digging which lives primarily but not solely, underground. Some examples are badgers, naked mole-rats, clams, ...
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ZoochoryZoochory animals are those that can disperse plant seeds in several ways. Seeds can be transported on the outside of vertebrate animals (mostly mam...
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NomadicNomadic animals regularly move to and from the same areas within a well-defined range. Most animals travel in groups in search of better territorie...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
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ViviparousAmong animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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BurrowingA burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to create a space suitable for habitation, temporary refuge, or as a byproduct ...
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TorporTorpor is a state of decreased physiological activity in an animal, usually marked by a reduced body temperature and metabolic rate. Torpor enables...
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PolygynyPolygyny is a mating system in which one male lives and mates with multiple females but each female only mates with a single male.
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Dominance hierarchyA dominance hierarchy (formerly and colloquially called a pecking order) is a type of social hierarchy that arises when members of animal social gr...
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HibernatingHibernation is a state of minimal activity and metabolic depression undergone by some animal species. Hibernation is a seasonal heterothermy charac...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withGroundhogs are one of the most well-known animal diggers in the world. They are much bigger than their relatives, such as chipmunks and squirrels. Double layers of fur keep them warm and waterproof, enabling them to cope in the cold and wick away moisture after being in the water. Their tails are shorter than that of other sciurids - only about one-fourth of body length. Male groundhogs average slightly larger than females and, like all marmots, they are considerably heavier during autumn (when engaged in autumn hyperphagia) than when emerging from hibernation in spring.
Groundhogs have a wide distribution in North America, especially in the east, being found from Georgia and Alabama in the United States to Ontario and northern Quebec. In the west, they go northward to Alaska and through the Northwest Territories and southern Yukon. Groundhogs like to be in open areas like fields, open forests, clearings, and rocky slopes. They usually dig their burrows where short-growing plants such as luxuriant grasses provide food for them and tend to avoid damp, swampy areas.
Groundhogs are diurnal and considered the most solitary of the marmot species. They live in aggregations, and their social organization also varies across populations. Groundhogs usually build summer and winter dens which typically have several entrances (and an escape hole) with many tunnels and chambers. Groundhogs usually eat twice a day in summer, each feeding session is no longer than 2 hours and they are often seen in the middle of the day sunning. When threatened, they arch their bodies, bare their teeth, and raise their tails. When alarmed, they use a high-pitched whistle to warn the rest of the colony, hence the name "whistle-pig". Groundhogs may squeal when fighting, seriously injured or caught by a predator. Other sounds groundhogs may make include low barks and a sound produced by grinding their teeth. Despite their heavy-bodied appearance, groundhogs are accomplished swimmers and occasionally climb trees when escaping predators or when they want to survey their surroundings. Typically, groundhogs are true hibernators, though, in the south of their range, they can remain active all through the year. For certain times of the year, groundhogs may enter torpor in the daytime.
Groundhogs have a herbivorous (graminivorous, folivorous) diet and eat primarily wild grasses and other vegetation, including berries and agricultural crops, when available. They will also occasionally eat small animals, such as grubs, grasshoppers, snails, and even baby birds.
Groundhogs are polygynous, with males having multiple mates each season. Males emerge earlier from hibernation than females so that they can establish territories and dominance hierarchies, and search for mates. Mating takes place soon after hibernation in spring, with the exact time varying by latitude and usually extending from early March until mid or late April. Gestation is 31 to 32 days, and 1 to 9 young are born, with most litters ranging between 3 and 5 pups. Weaning takes place around 44 days old. Very quickly pups become independent and leave their mothers around 2 months old. Groundhogs become reproductively mature at the age of 1, however maturity at the age of 2 is more usual.
Currently, there are no significant threats to groundhogs.
According to IUCN, the groundhog is common and widespread throughout its range but no overall population estimate is available. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) and its numbers today remain stable.
Burrows abandoned by groundhogs provide shelter for a variety of wildlife including rabbits, raccoons, foxes, weasels, skunks, and opossums. In addition, when groundhogs dig their burrows, they move large amounts of subsoil, which helps with aerating and mixing the soil.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...