Spring in Massachusetts arrives quietly — a softening of the air, the first green shoots pushing through thawing soil, and if you know where to look, a round, russet-brown animal cautiously poking its head out of a burrow for the first time in months. That animal is the woodchuck, and its reappearance each late winter or early spring is one of the most reliable seasonal signals the state has to offer.
Whether you spotted one waddling across a field margin or noticed a fresh mound of dirt near a stone wall, this guide walks you through everything you need to know about marmot hibernation in Massachusetts — when it starts, when it ends, what happens next, and where you can go to see these animals for yourself.
Which Marmot Species Live in Massachusetts
The groundhog (Marmota monax), also known as the woodchuck, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. It is the only member of the marmot family you will find living wild in Massachusetts.
The woodchuck is the only marmot that occurs in the eastern half of the US. The groundhog, being a lowland animal, is exceptional among marmots. Other marmots, such as the yellow-bellied and hoary marmots, live in rocky and mountainous areas. The woodchuck’s preference for open fields and woodland edges makes Massachusetts’s landscape a near-perfect fit…