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Ecology
Food Web
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Woodchuck
Marmota momax
Reesey
Classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordate
Class:Mammal
Order:Rodentla
Family:Sciuridae
Genus:Marmota
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Physical Description
Woodchucks look like large rodents. They are brown with bushy tails, small
ears and short legs. Woodchuck's grow up to 32 inches long, and weigh up
to 14 pounds. A woodchuck's feet are usually darker brown or black. They are
very clean animals. Woodchucks usually live on their own, exept during mating
season. The woodchucks belong to the squirrel family.
Diet and Feeding Habits
Woodchucks are omnivores and eat a wide variety of vegetation,
including grasses, weed shoots, clover, alfalfa, and soy beans. They also
like garden vegetables such as cabbage, beans, peas, and carrots, also fruits
suck as apples, cherries, and pears. Sometimes woodchucks eat insects, snails
and bird eggs. Eastern Canada and Midwestern United states. Woodchuck's
prefer early morning and evening hours for feeding because they depend on
dew and plant moisture for their water in take. A burrow usually has 9 nest
chambers lined with grasses, a main entrance, and severa escape openings.
Sometimes they eat snails, insects, baby birds.
Reproduction
Female woodchucks have one litter each year, with four or five young. They
are usually born in April or May. When babies are born they are blind. They
weigh 26 -27 when born. When they are born they are not colored it takes
a week to get their color. After two weeks they grow hair. After three they
can crawl. By the fourth week they can open their eyes. The fifth week the
babies are almost fully capable.
Habitat
Woodchucks dig their own burrows for their dens or shelters. Their dens
are typically located in open fields, meadows, pastures, and woodland edges.
In suburban areas they burrow under barns, sheds, and porches. The burrows
dug by woodchucks are 8 to 66 feet long and 2 to 5 feet deep. There are
2-3 entrances in each den. Mostly live in fields, woods, lawns, and gardens.
Role in the Ecosystem
Woodchucks ar omnivores which means they eat meat and plants. The other
kinds of animals are carnivores, which only eat meat and herbivores who only
eat plants. The woodchuck is both a predator and prey. It is prey because
wolfs, foxes, dogs, and coyotes all eat them. It is a predator because it
eats insects, dead animals, snails, and bird eggs. The woodchuck is mostly
a herbivore so it keeps the popoulation down. Woodchucks hibernate from late
September to late February. They have well developed incisors that can be
used for burrowing as well as eating. They can live to be 4-5 years old.
Bibliography
fcpieda/istandcreekes/ecology/woodchack.htm
elismorrowsch.com/classnews/mmlericw
athensclarkecount.com/
wildlifecontrol.info/
fcps.edu/
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