Living on the edge of a golf course, we see a daily parade of birds and other critters, more than we would if we had a row of houses behind our lot. Among those critters are groundhogs, and they entertain us as they comb the ground for good things to eat.
Groundhogs are surprisingly fast, their land beaver bodies bolting across yards and fairways near our home. In a sprint, they’d give squirrels a good challenge, although they don’t seem built for anything beyond a 100-meter dash.
This is prime groundhog time, as these cousins of Punxsutawney Phil are long removed from hibernation and bringing their young ones out into the world. The groundhog atop this post has been hanging around the edge of our yard the past several days.
We have dubbed this presumed male of the species Alejandro and we call presumed females Esperanza, inspired by characters in the Antonio Banderas movie “Mask of Zorro.” (I know, I know. Zorro means fox. More on foxes later.)
We saw a mother leading a few babies along our property line the other day. I didn’t have my camera at the ready, so I’m offering a shot I took a couple of years ago.
We’re glad these animals are thriving. We’re also grateful that none of them ever invaded our garden patch, which we paved over this spring in favor of raised plant beds. We hope that the groundhogs (or woodchucks, as they are known elsewhere) remain plentiful. That assures a good balance of nature in our environs and brightens our days with rodential antics. 🦅
The Jersey Birder 