How do groundhogs get through the winter

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Although they can hibernate for up to five months, some hibernate for only two to three months, depending on temperatures in the area. As the days shorten, temperatures drop and plants begin to die or go dormant for the winter, a groundhog's body releases a hormone that helps guide the animal into hibernation until the weather warms and the days begin to grow longer.

Groundhogs undergo a severe change as they relax into a hibernation state. A groundhog's heart rate slows from between 80 and beats per minute to around four or five beats per minute. They don't wake up to eat; instead, their bodies, which have reduced nutrition needs while hibernating, feed on the fat layer the groundhogs built up in the summer and fall. A groundhog's body stays barely above the ambient temperature in the burrow, falling from 98 degrees Fahrenheit to as low as 38 degrees.

Groundhogs spend a good bit of the warmer months getting ready for hibernation. Females have babies early in the spring, usually in late March or early April.

This gives the babies time to mature through the summer so they can dig their own dens for the winter.