Happy Groundhog Day! Groundhogs owe their annual moment in the spotlight to the simple fact that they were the animal that most closely resembled the European hedgehog to Pennsylvania’s early German settlers.  Since 1887, the year of the first official Groundhog Day celebration in Punxsutawney, PA, these rodents have maintained their notoriety for their weather forecasting abilities.  However, it is their incredible adaptability that has allowed them to not only survive, but also thrive in a world where that is not easy to do.  If you can look past the annoyance of your vegetable garden being pillaged, or that gaping hole dug under your storage shed, you’ll find an animal with a knack for construction, intelligence, and oh yeah…a whole lot of sass.

Akron Zoo is home to Summer the groundhog, who is one of the zoo’s ambassador animals.  Summer was born in her native habitat in 2018, but her life took an interesting turn.  A resident in Stark County heard a commotion in her backyard between her cat and her dog.  Upon investigation, the two animals were squabbling over a little baby groundhog that the cat had in its mouth.  The pet owner was able to retrieve the baby groundhog and took it to a wildlife rehabilitation center at a local county park.  This little groundhog was nursed back to health by the caring staff, and released back into the wild when she was the appropriate age.  However, the same day she was released, a person walking the path in the park called the wildlife hospital to say that a little groundhog was following her and seemed to want to be picked up.  When staff reported to the scene, the groundhog was Summer.  Because of this behavior, Summer had lost her ticket to being a wild groundhog.

Because Summer had become too accustomed to humans, she needed an appropriate home, which is why Akron Zoo stepped into the picture.  Zoo staff went to visit Summer at the wildlife center to assess her potential as an ambassador animal.  Needless to say, Summer passed the test with flying colors.  Since then, Summer has become a star in the zoo’s animal show, entertains audiences with her poor table manners when eating, and has educated people of the many fascinating facts about groundhogs. For example, a single groundhog can excavate over 700 pounds of dirt.  Groundhog tunnels have separate rooms, including bedrooms and bathrooms.  Not only are the tunnels home to the groundhogs, but also many other native species who would not survive winter without them.  All of the organic material that groundhogs gather for bedding in their tunnels naturally composts and returns vital nutrients to the soil. Groundhogs are one of the largest mammals to truly hibernate.  Male groundhogs are romantic and awaken first from hibernation in order to visit and woo the females in their territory.  Groundhogs can swim and climb trees.  Groundhogs are adorable…ok, that’s probably more opinion than fact.

Summer is an amazing animal to take care of and work with.  She loves her bedroom to be as messy as possible, never leaves a scrap of food, and uses a litter box – she is a zookeeper’s dream.  Among her favorite things are running on her giant exercise wheel, trying to sneak out of even the slightest opening of her door, sleeping on her back with a blanket tucked around her, and food…too many favorites in that category to list.  Summer has spent nearly her entire life in human care, but she is by no means tame, and staff who work with her have great respect for her speed and sharp rodent teeth.  Though her life in the wild was thwarted by fate, Summer lives her life at the zoo as though every day is Groundhog’s Day. 

Groundhogs bulk up in the fall to prepare for hibernation in the winter. Summer definitely succeeded in that aspect as her box holes are getting a little tight! Follow @akronzoo and #summerthegroundhog on Instagram for more of Summer's shenanigans!