Groundhogs, also known as woodchucks or whistle-pigs, live in Georgia. These rodents are a familiar sight in both rural and urban environments across the state. They are the largest members of the squirrel family and are known for their burrowing habits.
Where Groundhogs Live in Georgia
Groundhogs are found throughout Georgia, though they are more common in the northern and central parts of the state, extending from the Piedmont region to the North Georgia mountains. Their preferred habitats include open fields, pastures, and woodland edges. They often inhabit disturbed ground, such as kudzu patches, embankments, hillsides, and areas around foundations.
Groundhogs typically establish their dens in well-drained soil, often near fence rows, hedgerows, or the base of trees. While mostly found in open spaces, they also adapt to suburban environments, digging burrows under sheds, porches, or building foundations.
How to Identify a Groundhog
Groundhogs are stocky, medium-sized rodents with distinct physical characteristics. They typically measure between 16 to 27 inches in length, including their short, bushy tail (4 to 7 inches long). Their weight usually ranges from 5 to 15 pounds.
Their fur is dense and coarse, varying in shades of brownish-gray, light tan, or reddish-brown, often with blackish fur mixed throughout. Groundhogs have short, powerful legs with thick claws, well-suited for digging. They possess a rounded head with small, inconspicuous ears and dark eyes located on the sides of their head, providing good peripheral vision. Their prominent, chisel-like incisors continually grow, requiring them to constantly wear them down.
Groundhog Behavior and Lifestyle
Groundhogs are skilled excavators, known for creating extensive and complex underground burrow systems. These burrows can be 2 to 5 feet deep and up to 66 feet long, including multiple chambers for sleeping, nesting, and waste. They typically have a main entrance with a mound of excavated dirt, along with several hidden escape routes.
These animals are primarily herbivorous, with their diet consisting mainly of grasses, clover, other green plants, fruits, garden vegetables, and occasionally tree bark. Groundhogs are diurnal, meaning they are most active during the day, particularly in the early morning and late afternoon.
Groundhogs are true hibernators, entering a deep sleep from late fall to early spring. During this period, their body temperature and heart rate significantly drop, allowing them to survive on stored fat reserves. Outside of the breeding season, groundhogs are largely solitary animals. They communicate through high-pitched whistles when alarmed.