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It appears that two squatters who invaded my property two years ago have increased their numbers.

I discovered a groundhog burrow behind my barn in 2023. One, perhaps both of the adults (I was unable at that time to distinguish a male from a female) dug into what was already a mound of dirt and weeds and moved in.

When my next door neighbor did some work for me last summer – which primarily consisted of clearing the weeds from behind the barn as well as cutting down a pecan tree – it must have spooked the groundhogs as I didn’t spot them for the remainder of 2024. Plus, there was no new activity at the entrance of the burrow.

Earlier this spring, I sighted one of the adults scurrying across the farm field in front of my house. I figured it was one of my former squatters and they had constructed a new burrow at the edge of the field or perhaps in the woods.

I was wrong.

Mr. and Mrs. G. Hog have apparently broadened their construction skills and made a new home inside my barn. It appears the main entrance is adjacent to the stump of the now removed pecan tree. Due to its close proximity to the barn, that stump caused some structural damage. That, plus a few rotten boards just above the barn’s foundation, served as the perfect entryway for my furry guests.

And, now, Maw and Paw Hog have welcomed three new additions to their family. I spotted the young pups (also called kits) for the first time this past Saturday while working in my yard. Maw Hog was scrounging for food just a short distance from the edge of the barn when I saw the first pup take a few careful steps from the burrow’s entrance.

That little critter (about the size of a softball) got spooked by something and quickly disappeared. It didn’t take long for him or her to return, this time venturing out a few steps further. That’s when I noticed a second pup emerge followed by a third. One propped up on its hind legs to observe the field of cotton behind them. None of them took more than a few steps into my backyard….staying close to the edge of the barn while mom was about 8-to-10 feet away.

From researching groundhogs online, I learned that the adult in my yard is a female. According to the Tufts University website, groundhog mating season is in the early spring and, after only a month-long pregnancy, mother groundhogs typically give birth to a litter of two to six pups. The mother groundhog raises the pups on their own.

The website also stressed that the word groundhog is a misnomer. Capable of weighing up to 15 pounds, groundhogs are among the largest members of the squirrel family Sciuridae and within the taxonomic tribe of marmots or ground squirrels — a group that also includes chipmunks and prairie dogs

The information included another name of the groundhog, which is also called a woodchuck, but that has nothing to do with wood. It stems from the Native American names for them: wuchak, wejack, and possibly otchek, which is a name for fishers.

The groundhog/woodchuck is also known as a whistle-pig, which is most common in Appalachia. That reference stems from groundhogs’ habit of making a high-pitched whistling sound, usually as a warning to other groundhogs when they feel threatened. The “pig” portion of that reference is similar to how we refer to woodchucks’ rodent-cousin – the guinea pig.

Primarily herbivores, groundhogs eat a variety of plants, including those found in vegetable gardens, according to the Tufts website. But they also may eat things we consider pests, such as grubs, other insects, and snails. They are even reported to eat other small animals such as baby birds.

Because of their relatively large adult size and burrowing—not to mention climbing and swimming abilities—groundhogs don’t have many predators aside from coyotes, foxes, domestic dogs, and, of course, humans. However, baby groundhogs sometimes do fall prey to raptors such as hawks, owls, and eagles.

Groundhogs are also among the few species of true hibernators. This is the part of their behavior that has led to North American Groundhog Day tradition. After losing up to half their weight while hibernating, groundhogs usually emerge from their winter burrows in February — hence the date of this holiday. The shadow-observing lore has no scientific basis. It was actually imported from a German tradition that bases forecasting on the behavior of the European badger, a totally unrelated small mammal as opposed to rodent, but one that does also burrow and undergo a less intense form of hibernation.

On the North Carolina Wildlife Commission website, I learned that groundhogs, in 1985, were typically located along the northern tier of counties as well as in the mountains. Since that time they have migrated south. They are not typically found in our coastal counties nor have they made it as far south as our southeastern inland counties.

It was on this website where I learned that it’s not uncommon for groundhogs to burrow under buildings if they can get access, which in my case they did. Fortunately, though groundhog burrow systems are complex (and with multiple openings), and can amount to up to 50 feet of total tunnel length, they typically do not cause significant damage to building foundations, and some homeowners are happy to let them stay.

That’s the predicament I currently face. I don’t feel uneasy about them being in my barn or yard, but I don’t want them to cause any damage to the crops in the nearby fields or make a meal of the gardens of my neighbors.

Since the groundhog is considered a nongame species, there is an open season to eliminate them by lethal means, but I don’t have the heart to use that method. I could choose to hire a licensed trapper to remove them.

I learned that Epsom salt is one of the cheapest ways to eliminate groundhogs without harming them. The salt is sprinkled near their burrows, which discourages them from remaining in that particular area.

The Wildlife Commission says groundhogs can be excluded from under buildings by installing a 3-4-foot-high fence of hardware cloth or chicken wire with a 1-foot underground footer and at least 1 foot at the top that will wobble when the critter attempts to climb it.

If you have any suggestions for the safe and humane removal of groundhogs, please contact me at the phone number or email shown below.

Cal Bryant is the Editor of Roanoke-Chowan Publications. Contact him at cal.bryant@r-cnews.com or 252-332-7207.