How much wood could a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood? Who cares — it’s chuckin’ season everyone!
Now is the time to go chuckin’ this spring and bag that Yellow-Bellied Marmot, also known as the common woodchuck or groundhog. People who love to hunt this small game will be excited to go out this spring, while maintaining safe social distancing standards during the COVID-19 pandemic of course, to nab a few of these rascally game creatures.
If you have never been “chuckin’” before, then it’s a good idea to find out if you can hunt these little buggers in an area near you. This is definitely a fun hunt that will energize you to pursue varmint hunting each season.
The Best Places to Hunt Woodchucks
You’ll find the majority of the woodchucks in the central and eastern parts of the United States. They are also in parts of Canada and Alaska. So, if you live in any of these areas you may be able to get out this season to go hunting. The woodchucks prefer forested areas with larger grassy places that have some vegetation for them to eat.
Harder to Hunt Then You Think
Even though they may seem like an easy hunt, actually nabbing a few woodchucks is a complex task. They are squirrelly little guys, and can easily disappear into the ground before you can even fire off a shot. Half of the hunt is going to be spent scouting these creatures to find their hiding holes and burrows.
The Yellow Bellied Marmot isn’t very big either, most of the animals will be under ten pounds, so it’s really like aiming for a large squirrel. In fact, they are actually the largest member of the squirrel family.
Your shot placement needs to be spot-on when you are going for them with your varmint hunting rifle. A couple of rifles that would be perfect to hunt woodchucks are the .308 Winchester or the .223 Remington. You are also going to want to have a great spotting scope and some binoculars to look for places the woodchucks may be hiding out.
Keep Conservation in Mind
It’s also important while you are hunting that you don’t kill more than one woodchuck per den that you see. This will keep the groupings of woodchucks healthy for that area. Be prepared while you are hunting to cover quite a bit of ground in the pursuit, so rugged and comfortable boots are a must-have this season.
As you stealthily stalk these varmints, you’ll be pleased to know that the tradition of hunting or chuckin’ is something you can enjoy year after year. Oh, and if you are curious about the riddle of how much wood could a woodchuck chuck, there is an answer. Wildlife expert Richard Thomas did the research on that. He estimated that it clocks in at about 700 pounds of wood. That’s a busy little woodchuck.
