Friday, August 6, 2010

A Hungry Groundhog

Groundhog. Woodchuck. Two different names for the same animal. This animal is actually a big ground squirrel. I prefer the name groundhog, but woodchuck is more fun to say. Look at him. He does look sort of like a small hog, doesn't he?

This groundhog was one of many that I found at this particular park. In the morning these groundhogs come out to eat grass before most of the humans show up. There are literally dozens of these creatures out here. They live very close to each other at this place even though they are usually kind of solitary creatures.

This particular groundhog is about twice as big as a normal house cat. Maybe even bigger than that. It's probably about normal sized for a groundhog. I followed it for a little while, and I even got some video this time. Video is becoming one of my favorite things.


So my newest episode of Rat TV features this groundhog walking around in the grass, eating as it goes along. Groundhogs have to eat as much as they can all summer so they can fatten up to prepare for their long winter hibernation underground. They get fatter and fatter and bigger and bigger all summer.

One thing I noticed while watching this groundhog was its ears. Yes, I said its ears. They look oddly human-like  to me. I found that oddly interesting that their ears are shaped so much like our own. I noticed thew same thing in other ground squirrels too.

Tree squirrels and chipmunks don't seem to share this trait with them though. I wonder without checking if these groundhogs have similar hearing to our own. It would be interesting to find out. I will probably check around a little bit later. I'll leave that little tidbit open for you to do the same.

And this is the last picture of the day of this big guy. If you want to see more cool pictures and video of groundhogs go visit one of my favorite bloggers at Photography By Ginny. I think Ginny has some new woodchuck photos up right now. She gets some excellent stuff.

On to a new subject. I think taking weekends off is finally beginning to re-energize me. Yesterday I felt more relaxed and content while out on my hike than I have in a very long time. Nature is there to relax us, but even that wasn't doing it for me as much as I'd like. Yesterday was a good turning point for me though I think.

Nature always takes my mind off my everyday worries, but sometimes I let those small worries get out of control. Being able to relax is always the best cure for that kind of thing. And a good long walk is one of the best things to clear your mind. The exercise really helps push all the bad things right out of you, and the nature all around you can help you relax. Try to remember that when your problems seem bad.


Nature Center Magazine -The Free Wallpaper for this week is a landscape picture I took just yesterday while I was out hiking.

17 comments:

  1. What a sweet little fellow! I've never known much about groundhogs and appreciated the detail here.

    Ratty, last time Rob Rossel did a nature post on my blog, you seemed to enjoy it. I think you will like his lastest on human-animal encounters . . . it's very sweet . . .
    http://wp.me/pne74-3RT

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  2. Nice post, I especially liked your observations about exercise, nature, and relaxing. Truer words were never written.

    Bill:www.wildramblings.com

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  3. They are entertaining to watch. I also think their ears are human-like and they can hear very well. My young one isn't used to me quite yet but I'm trying. I talk to him as much as I can. His mom would always come running when I called her. She's huge now but doesn't come around much. Seems I only see the one lately. Happy to hear you are relaxing more too Ratty. Does no good to worry. Have a great weekend!! Thanks for the plug to my blog..I appreciate it!!

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  4. I call them Charlies. Don't want to take my name in vain.
    -- Chuck :)

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  5. My human was surprised when she found out how big groundhogs were! They would dwarf me - if they are twice the size of a normal cat, they are probably about four times my size!

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  6. I was told by some local farmers that they could climb a tree. Sure would love to see that but would settle on a video or a photo...hint..hint. :)
    So true about how nature can relax a worried mind.

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  7. Have a good weekend. Go sleep in the park. Exhange your breath with the trees.

    Wow, such a lovely weekend.

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  8. Like the pictures of the groundhogs. Normally I only see these guys running across the road in the morning.

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  9. He is a little cutie and I love seeing him up close and personal. Very nice shots and video.

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  10. This might come as a surprise, but I've never seen a groundhog ever. Good capture, Ratty! :)

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  11. This is a humongous groundhog..I would have mistaken it for giant rat..Like the video too, Ratty!

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  12. These things are really nasty little animals. They carry lots of disease, do lots of damage around houses, are really hard to get rid of. We have far too many of them around here. You need to be careful around them, they can be quite aggressive. We even had one next door on the deck that ate right through patio furniture!

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  13. I see more armadillos around these parts rather than groundhogs. I miss these furry little knuckleheads. Thanks for the memories.

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  14. Great to see video of these little guys in action, we don't have them over here.

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  15. I enjoyed seeing your video Ratty, we don't see a lot of groundhogs in this area so it was a treat. In AK and the western part of WA I have always seen marmots, the groundhog's bigger cousin.

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  16. We don't have those cool woodchucks out here. The closest thing is the marmot that occurs in the high sierras. I've seen them a few times. They look very cuddly but I bet they could chew your arm off. ;)

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  17. Chubby and cute. Didn't notice the similarity in their ears either until you mentioned. Cool observations Ratty.

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