How big does a Groundhog get? Here is an overview over the average adult age:
A grown Groundhog (Marmota monax) reaches an average size of 41.4 cm (1′ 5″).
When born, they have an average size of 0 cm (0′ 0″). During their lifetime of about 10 years, they grow from 27 grams (0.06 lbs) to 3.88 kg (8.55 lbs). Talking about reproduction, Groundhogs have 4 babies about 1 times per year. The Groundhog (genus: Marmota) is a member of the family Sciuridae.
As a reference: Humans reach an average body size of 1.65m (5′ 5″) while carrying 62 kg (137 lbs). A human woman is pregnant for 280 days (40 weeks) and on average become 75 years old.
The groundhog (Marmota monax), also known as a woodchuck, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. It was first scientifically described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758.The groundhog is also referred to as a chuck, wood-shock, groundpig, whistlepig, whistler, thickwood badger, Canada marmot, monax, moonack, weenusk, red monk and, among French Canadians in eastern Canada, siffleux.The name “thickwood badger” was given in the Northwest to distinguish the animal from the prairie badger. Monax (Móonack) is an Algonquian name of the woodchuck, which meant “digger” (cf. Lenape monachgeu). Young groundhogs may be called chucklings.Other marmots, such as the yellow-bellied and hoary marmots, live in rocky and mountainous areas, but the groundhog is a lowland creature. It is found through much of the eastern United States across Canada and into Alaska.
Animals of the same family as a Groundhog
We found other animals of the Sciuridae family:
- Southern Amazon red squirrel with a weight of 403 grams
- Mexican ground squirrel with a size of 19.3 cm (0′ 8″)
- Western dwarf squirrel with a weight of 120 grams
- Indian giant squirrel bringing 1.06 kilos (2.34 lbs) to the scale
- Southern Palawan tree squirrel with a size of 21 cm (0′ 9″)
- Thomas’s flying squirrel with a size of 34 cm (1′ 2″)
- Long-clawed ground squirrel with a size of 24.4 cm (0′ 10″)
- Red squirrel with a size of 21.3 cm (0′ 9″)
- Cliff chipmunk with a size of 12.5 cm (0′ 5″)
- Temminck’s flying squirrel with a size of 11.8 cm (0′ 5″)
Animals with the same size as a Groundhog
Not that size really matters, but it makes things comparable. So here are a couple of animals that are as big as Groundhog:
- African brush-tailed porcupine with a size of 43.1 cm (1′ 5″)
- Red acouchi with a size of 36.3 cm (1′ 3″)
- Black-footed ferret with a size of 39.7 cm (1′ 4″)
- Philippine flying lemur with a size of 38 cm (1′ 3″)
- Olive colobus with a size of 45.9 cm (1′ 7″)
- Stripe-necked mongoose with a size of 47.8 cm (1′ 7″)
- Six-banded armadillo with a size of 44.8 cm (1′ 6″)
- David’s echymipera with a size of 37.6 cm (1′ 3″)
- Indian grey mongoose with a size of 39.8 cm (1′ 4″)
- Steppe polecat with a size of 43.2 cm (1′ 6″)
Animals with the same litter size as a Groundhog
Here is a list of animals that have the same number of babies per litter (4) as a Groundhog:
- Chestnut white-bellied rat
- Tropical pocket gopher
- Mexican prairie dog
- Dune hairy-footed gerbil
- Visayan warty pig
- Geata mouse shrew
- Alexander’s kusimanse
- Ornate shrew
- Allen’s chipmunk
- Panamint chipmunk
Animals with the same life expectancy as a Groundhog
Completely different animals, but becoming as old as a Groundhog:
- Side-striped jackal with an average maximal age of 11.42 years
- Red-flanked duiker with an average maximal age of 9.5 years
- Long-nosed potoroo with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Weasel sportive lemur with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Banded mongoose with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Horsfield’s tarsier with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Java mouse-deer with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Short-tailed chinchilla with an average maximal age of 10 years
- Greater spear-nosed bat with an average maximal age of 10 years
- Edible dormouse with an average maximal age of 9 years
Animals with the same weight as a Groundhog
As a comparison, here are some other animals that weight as much as the Marmota monax:
- Greater cane rat with a weight of 3.75 kilos (8.27 lbs)
- Salt’s dik-dik with a weight of 3.4 kilos (7.5 lbs)
- Crested mona monkey with a weight of 3.58 kilos (7.89 lbs)
- Margay with a weight of 3.27 kilos (7.21 lbs)
- Royal antelope with a weight of 3.9 kilos (8.6 lbs)
- Fisher (animal) with a weight of 3.75 kilos (8.27 lbs)
- Philippine porcupine with a weight of 3.55 kilos (7.83 lbs)
- Red ruffed lemur with a weight of 3.87 kilos (8.53 lbs)
- Brown palm civet with a weight of 3.55 kilos (7.83 lbs)
- Southern naked-tailed armadillo with a weight of 4.06 kilos (8.95 lbs)