Chucking the woodchuck

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September 24, 2008

By Luke Fritz/Butler County FSA Allied News Wed Sep 24, 2008, 10:04 AM EDT

Everyone is familiar with Groundhog Day being Feb. 2 and the excitement of whether or not a shadow will be seen on Gobblers Knob in Punxsutawney. That seems to be all fun and games but what is not is the damage done by and havoc caused by groundhogs for crop and vegetable producers.

The groundhog, or woodchuck, is one of 14 species of marmots. These rodents live a feast-or-famine lifestyle and gorge themselves all summer to build up plentiful reserves of fat. After the first frost, they retreat to their underground burrows and snooze until spring, drawing their sustenance from body fat. While hibernating, the animal’s heart rate plunges, and its body temperature is not much warmer than the temperature inside its burrow.

Groundhogs are the largest members of the squirrel family. Though they are usually seen on the ground, they can climb trees and are also capable swimmers. These rodents frequent the areas where woodlands meet open spaces, like fields, roads, or streams. Here they eat grasses and plants as well as fruits and tree bark. They can decimate a field while voraciously feeding during the summer and fall seasons.

The attached pictures were recently taken in Center Township, Butler County. Notice the bare spots caused by groundhogs. In this case these soybeans are a complete loss due to groundhog feeding in fact the barren area will expand as the groundhogs consume more by the end of the season.

Many hunters enjoy the sport of groundhog hunting as a challenge but many times they can not be hunted safely as was the case in this soybean field in Center Township. Really there are very few predators that would prey on full grown groundhogs, so in many cases they thrive. Vegetable growers and soybean producers would suffer the greatest crop losses from groundhogs. Consider that there are around 7,000 acres of soybeans in Butler County it would be a conservative estimate to say that 3% will be completely destroyed by groundhogs. This would be around $150,000 loss as a conservative estimate. Just imagine the loss to fruit and vegetable producers and many soybean producers suffer much more than only 3% loss. Groundhogs are without a doubt as destructive as any wildlife including deer and bear; it just depends on where a farm is located and the crops being produced.

In closing, one item that was not mentioned is the physical damage to farm machinery and the safety aspect of a hay wagon hitting a groundhog hole and rolling over with someone on the wagon. Tractors have also been known to roll over upon hitting a groundhog hole. More common though are the broken mower knife sections, rake teeth, tedder teeth, bent wagon frames, broken wagon spindles. The list could go on and on, the bottom line is that groundhogs are rodents.

What is the wake-up call?

The groundhog’s internal clock is believed to be affected by annual changes in the amount of daylight. Hormonal responses to cyclic changes in production of melatonin, a sleep-related hormone, are thought by some to be the signal to wake up.

How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?

About 700 pounds. Compared to beavers, groundhogs/woodchucks are not adept at moving timber, although some will chew wood. A wildlife biologist once measured the inside volume of a typical woodchuck burrow and estimated that – if wood filled the hole instead of dirt – the industrious animal would have chucked about 700 pounds worth.

The average groundhog is 20 inches long and normally weighs from 12 to 15 pounds.

Groundhogs are covered with coarse grayish hairs (fur) tipped with brown or sometimes dull red. They have short ears, a short tail, short legs, and are surprisingly quick. Their jaws are exceptionally strong.

A groundhog can whistle when it is alarmed. Groundhogs also whistle in the spring when they begin courting.

Insects do not bother groundhogs and germs pretty much leave them alone. They are resistant to the plagues that periodically wipe out large numbers of wild animals.

Young groundhogs are usually born in mid-April or May and by July they are able to go out on their own. The size of the litter is 4 to 9. A baby groundhog is called a kit or a cub.

A groundhog’s life span is normally 6 to 8 years.

Luke Fritz is executive director for the Butler/Beaver/Allegheny County FSA Committee

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