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I FINALLY got some pics of the Groundhog that hangs out at my grandson's school. Then I found out there's a whole FAMILY of them BEHIND the school. YAAAAY! More pictures......BABIES!......(later)


THE GROUNDHOG



THE GROUNDHOG AND ITS DEN




NAPTIME!

This is the first one I've ever really photographed. I've gotten pics with less powerful cameras from a distance. This one was relatively tame and let me get about 30 feet from it.

I can't look at groundhogs without a chuckle as I think of Bill Murray in Groundhog Day.

"He could still be alive"

Kaboom!

"Well, maybe not now"

I found out THIS morning that what I've called a Groundhog or Woodchuck all my life is actually a Marmot, a Giant Ground Squirrel! A friend in France sent me a picture of a Marmot he took in The Alps and it was IDENTICAL, so I Googled it up and sure enough, Groundhog is an American nickname for Marmot!

never knew that either Thornius. I've never seen one in person either.

Come on over, Sheri. How many do you want to see? I've got two or three colonies already located. Oh! And they are close, GIANT relatives of Prairie Dogs, too!

how many are in a colony? Do they eat gardens and flowers or what? Will they bite the students at the school?

Colonies are basically family groups, all members genetically related. A colony is a bout 2 - 5 members. They are somewhat destructive of crops and gardens. In rural Tennessee, many farmers carry rifles in their trucks to shoot the ground hogs they see. Groundhogs can dig burrows in pastures causing livestock to fall and injure themselves. They won't bite the students. They tend to run from people and aren't aggressive at all. If capture as babies and raised, they make good pets.

Groundhogs look amazing creatures, we dont have them in England, so forgive my ignorance, but how big is a fully grown groundhog?

They are pretty big, Glenda. As big or bigger than a large house cat and can weigh about a Stone (14lbs.) My new son-in-law is from Scotland and is rapidly turning me into an honorary Brit. I am learning all the measurements and currency you use across the pond. They have Groundhogs in the Alps and Pyrenees where they are called Marmots. SAME animal, different continent.

Thanks for the info Thorny.They seem amazing.

I found ANOTHER Groundhog/Marmot today. It was by the entrance to President Andrew Jackson's mansion, The Hermitage, about 1 1/2 miles from the picture I took in this thread, so I've now located about 4 dens in my town, all within 3 miles of my house.