Groundhogs can challenge hunters Farm land in Aroostook provides plenty of chances

Among the outdoor fraternity, the summer months are far more beneficial to the anglers than the hunters. Fresh water and salt water fishing opportunities abound during warm weather, but for shooters the choices are limited to the target range, skeet field or small game gunning. While punching holes in paper and shattering clay birds keeps marksmanship and reflexes sharp, the physical and mental challenge of locating, stalking and shooting a wary quarry is missing.

For the Maine sportsman who prefers not to swap a rifle for a rod throughout the entire summer, it’s time to take advantage of the long season on one of the varmint shooter’s favorite targets – the common groundhog or woodchuck. Woodchucks are an unprotected game animal in most states, and may be hunted year around, but since they hibernate throughout the cold weather months, summer is the only practical hunting season. From April to September, it’s prime ‘chuck season, especially early spring before the grass gets high in pastures and late summer after crop fields are harvested so the animals can be spotted better.

Groundhogs are larger than most people realize, some weighing more than 10 pounds, and when they are sitting up they are 20-22 inches tall and fairly easy to spot. When down on all four paws and feeding or scurrying from one spot to another, they are difficult to spot and even more difficult to shoot. Color phases run from cinnamon to dark chocolate, they have keen eyesight and hearing and are devout herbivores. For the scientific-minded, groundhogs are actually one of the North American marmot family.

Prime woodchuck habitat consists of rolling farms and agricultural land, especially grass pastures, clover and alfalfa with a smattering of rock walls, rock piles or exposed boulders. Brush piles, hedgerows and sparse wood lots along crop fields attract these burrowing denizens as well. It’s easy to see why the farm fields of Aroostook and the dairy farms and cropland of central Maine harbor so many woodchuck, and offer such great hunting opportunities.

Why woodchuck?

Occasionally someone will question why such a cute, furry little animal is hunted. Anyone who’s had a groundhog in their garden, or a family of them take over a well-manicured yard, will understand why some need to be eliminated. Farmers, dairymen, and horse ranch owners are plagued far worse than small landowners. A single woodchuck can consume an entire acre of alfalfa in the run of a summer, imagine the damage a couple of dozen can do to the crops.

The greens in a moderate-size garden will be demolished in a couple of weeks by one woodchuck. Not to mention the incessant tunneling and holes that cows, horses, and other animals can step into and sustain serious injury. Most farmers welcome hunters, and some even pay pest control individuals to reduce or eliminate the hungry rodents overrunning their land. Maine’s problems with groundhogs are minimal compared to farmers and ranchers in the Midwest and western states where these animals thrive all year long.

Although not the epitome of wild game, a number of recipes for fried, broiled, or baked woodchuck are available. Some folks who favor stew substitute the meat for beef, with tasty results. Just like a cow, groundhogs are herbivorous in nature, therefore the mild tasting meat. Immediate skinning, quartering, and defatting of the animal and overnight cooling will enhance the flavor of the meat. Many fly tiers use the fur for creating wings, tails, and hair bodies in certain fly patterns. When someone turns up their nose at the thought of eating a woodchuck, my pat answer is to tell them to consider the first guy desperate enough to catch and eat a lobster. Who could have guessed something so ugly could taste so good?

Hunting strategy

There are two basic ways to hunt groundhogs: up close, taking shots at less than 50 yards, or long range, when shots between 100 and 200 yards are common. Outdoorsmen who favor using a shotgun, handgun, or a black powder gun need to be fairly close for an accurate, humane shot. Bow hunters need to be even closer, say 30 yards or less. A .22 or .22 magnum rimfire rifle with a medium-power scope is a very popular woodchuck gun, but absolute maximum for this caliber is 100 yards, and 50-75 yards is far more lethal. The most popular varmint rifles are very fast, flat-shooting center-fire calibers that are deadly at 300 yards or more, and we will talk more about these later.

A woodchuck’s daily routine is fairly simple, but a hunter must be familiar with it to be successful. Early and late each day the animals spend a couple of hours devouring any available succulent greens. Late mornings and afternoons are spent taking naps in their subterranean condos. During midday, when the sun is out, the woodchucks love to climb onto a large boulder, rock pile, or stone fence line near a den entrance and soak up a few rays.

No matter if you’re shooting at close range or long distance, scouting a field or two and using a spotting scope or binoculars to pinpoint animals and their home territory is crucial to consistent success. Once an overview of a field is accomplished, the hunter will be aware of entrance holes, emergency exit holes, dens, feeding areas, sunning spots, and travel routes. Make no mistake, these furry crop cutters are sharp-witted, wary, and learn from mistakes – yours and theirs!

Once acquainted with a particular area, close-range shooters can spot a target, stalk within range, and take a shot. The other option is to slowly and carefully stalk the field edges, using as much cover as is available, until a groundhog is caught in the open. Not surprisingly, woodchucks don’t always follow these game plans, and it’s not uncommon to spook half a dozen of these sharp-eyed, fast-moving critters before getting a good shot with a short-range gun.

Long-range shooters use a different tactic and generally get more shots, but even with a top quality varmint rifle and scope, the distances are challenging. Pre-scouting a field gives the shooter a general idea where the holes and tunnels are located and where to watch once a central shooting location is selected. If possible, a gunner should set up between two large fields to avail himself of more target opportunities. A trick to better pinpoint tunnel entrances is to flag each spot. Farm stores have crop flags, a 2-foot length of stiff wire with a square of brightly colored material at the tip that’s used to mark field rows and borders. These are great for pinpointing likely target sites so a sport can keep an eye on specific spots rather than try to peruse the entire field.

Choose your weapon

Choosing to hunt groundhogs with archery equipment, black powder guns, or a handgun will certainly test your stalking and shooting skills. Shotguns and .22s allow a bit more room for error, but still require stealth and good woodsmanship during the approach and shot setup. Practicing with a favorite weapon at the range is vital before going afield after live game. Pound for pound woodchucks are one of the toughest, most tenacious small game animals, so shot placement is crucial with close range weapons to prevent wounded animals. Woodchucks are generally close to escape holes, so even a mortally wounded one can crawl into a tunnel or rock pile to die. Take only head, neck, or heart shots on stationary targets, and if in doubt, pass up the shot or wait for a better one. Small game deserve the same respect, shooting guidelines, and humane treatment as big game animals.

Long-range shooting with hard-hitting, center-fire ammunition will generally drop a woodchuck on the spot. Nonetheless, head shots are still recommended and many shooters use a bipod or nearby tree, rock, or fence post for a rifle rest. Shooting offhand is fine for a rifleman at 50-100 yards, and if you can manage a head shot on a groundhog, hitting a big buck in just the right spot this fall will be a snap.

Preferred long-range calibers for woodchuck include the .22 Hornet with a 45-grain bullet, a .222 with a 50-grain slug, .230 Swift with 48 grains, and a .22-250 or .223. If your deer rifle is a .243, .257, .270, or even a .308, these will work with light loads, and the benefit of using a particular gun and just changing the load for various seasons is evident.

Good optics are a must for long-range shooting. I wouldn’t suggest any less than a 12-power scope on a varmint rifle and variable scopes up to 20-power are common. A spotting scope and tripod will help identify a rock that looks like a woodchuck from the real thing at 200 yards, and a hand-held range finder will also make you a better shooter and hunter.

Woodchuck hunting is a sporting endeavor that allows a hunter to keep his skills sharp throughout the summer, when shooting opportunities are scarce. Thinning out these crop eaters even a bit is a blessing to farmers and gardeners as well. A sportsman can’t spend every warm-weather outing with a fishing rod, so for a bit of diversity, spend some time varmint hunting. Woodchucks are sharp-eyed, wary, fast afoot, and much more of a hunting challenge than most shooters realize. This could be just the summer shooting challenge you’re looking for.

Outdoor feature writer Bill Graves can be reached at graves@umpi.maine.edu