Rolling on through this month of “page-turning.” Yes. Day One started with a blog about The Wizard of Oz, and then the next day, I carried over some piece of that day’s blog into the next, and on and on. Here we are, having visited “tongue twisters” yesterday. In it, I mentioned the twist: “How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?”
And that made me wonder about woodchucks.
Experts say that those woodchucks don’t actually chuck wood. What is chucking anyway? To chuck is to “throw something carelessly or casually.” So maybe a woodchuck really can chuck wood. I mean, they can move about 5,500 pounds of dirt excavating their burrows. There is probably some wood in there somewhere.
The nickname “woodchuck” actually comes from the Algonquin name, “wuchak.” For the record, the woodchuck is found across much of the eastern United States and southern Canada.
Woodchuck, groundhog, whistle pigs, land beavers– any way you say it, they all refer to the same critter. Yes. The same deal. So. When good old Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow? We call this “Groundhog Day.” When we really could be celebrating “Woodchuck Day” instead.
But in truth? They are really North America’s largest squirrel.
Yes indeedy. Woodchucks are the largest members of the squirrel family and can climb trees. And when they run, they wobble like a bowl of Jell-O. I love to see Woodchucks run.
Anyway, here is something for dentists. A groundhog’s teeth never stop growing. Their upper and lower incisors can grow up to 1/16″ every week. And, by the end of things, their teeth can average a length of 4 inches. By nature’s grace, their incisors usually grind against each other, keeping them short. But, every so often, Bucky is born. Occasionally, the teeth are misaligned and will keep growing. Unfortunately for the poorly aligned woodchuck, the outcome is painful and sometimes fatal. Long in the tooth.
They also must have good paws or hands or feet. Because they can dig. Woodchucks move almost three tons of dirt excavating a burrow. And, oh, how they burrow. Their little underground homes aren’t so little. Their humble abodes can reach 30 feet or more in length and have multiple tunnels and chambers within. Woodchucks build between 2 to 5 entrances into the burrow to help them escape when they are hanging out above ground.
They make multiple entrances because they are not very fast. I mentioned I liked to see them run. Probably, because it is in slow motion. Woodchucks only have a top speed of 10 miles an hour. They’re no match for faster predators, hence the burrows with a lot of doors.
Okay. All this is good, but why do they call them “whistle pigs?” Simply enough, they whistle while they work. The nickname “whistle pig” comes from the loud, high-pitched whistle they use to alert other woodchucks of danger. Even though this species of marmot prefers to live alone, they behave as good neighbors when a hungry eagle flies overhead.
The thing I love about them most is all their different names. Groundhog. Whistlepig. Woodchuck. Of course, whenever I hear “chuck,” I think of Charles, and that sends me in another direction. So many famous Charles in our world. Charles Darwin, Charles Dickens, Charlie Chaplin, Charles Schultz. There’s Lindbergh, de Gaulle, and Grodin. And now, we even have a King Charles. But my favorite may be Charlie Brown. All Chucks, one way or another. Along with our woodchuck.
So, there it is. A glimpse at the woodchuck. One big, happy, whistling squirrel.
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My enemies are worms, cool days, and most of all woodchucks.
— Henry David Thoreau
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Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
—Albert Einstein
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Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.
— Lao Tzu
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Whistling kind of pig. Or is it a squirrel?
