Photo 2a: A woodchuck (groundhog) eats
a lot right now to fatten up for its hibernation*. A hibernating woodchuck's
body temperature may go down to 38 degrees F (3.3
oC) from a normal temp of 100 (37.8
oC)!*
We happened to spot this guy on the trail of the Eloise Butler Wildflower & Bird
Sanctuary, Minneapolis, MN, while Crystal+,
a naturalist, was leading her wildflower tour. To our surprise, this guy stood
on his hind legs for five minutes or so until we got closer to him. We became
curious about this standing behavior so we checked out web pages on woodchucks.
Yes, we've just found one web site** describing woodchuck's defensive habits; as
one of the habits, groundhogs often stand on hind legs to check for trouble. It
sounds like prairie dogs. So we've learned that groundhogs are very good at
standing. This woodchuck looks so COOL! FYI: This woodchuck's body length
was around 60 cm. This pic was taken at the Sanctuary
on September 17, 2006.
Groundhogs at
Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden Photo:
1
Groundhog Wakes |
2a
/ 2b
(Up-Close) Groundhog Eats
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photo fy
* Comments from Julie, a naturalist (volunteer at Arboretum). "Julie,
Thanks so much for your comments."
**
<
http://www.lakesidenaturecenter.org/AC_Woodchuck.html
>
More info on Woodchucks: <
http://www.havahart.com/nuisance/groundhogs/groundhog_facts.asp
>
+ "Crystal, it's very kind of you to let us take pix of this
woodchuck for quite a long time. Thanks."
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