NewsPronto

 
Men's Weekly

.

USA Conversation

The Conversation USA

The Conversation USA

Groundhogs are lousy forecasters but valuable animal engineers – and an important food source

  • Written by Steven Sullivan, Director of the Hefner Museum of Natural History, Miami University
imageMarmot chomping and digging can keep trees at bay and fields flower-filled.DieterMeyrl/E+ via Getty Images

Whether you call him groundhog, woodchuck, whistle-pig or use the full genus and species name, Marmota monax, the nation’s premiere animal weather forecaster has been making headlines as Punxsutawney Phil for decades.

The largest ground...

Read more: Groundhogs are lousy forecasters but valuable animal engineers – and an important food source

More Articles ...

  1. A more complete Latin American history, including centuries of US influence, helps students understand the complexities surrounding Nicolás Maduro’s arrest
  2. Ending tax refunds by check will speed payments, but risks sidelining people who don’t have bank accounts
  3. US hospitality and tourism professors don’t mirror the demographics of the industry they serve
  4. Where do seashells come from?
  5. Malaria researchers are getting closer to outsmarting the world’s deadliest parasite
  6. How Trump’s Greenland threats amount to an implicit rejection of the legal principles of Nuremberg
  7. Artificial metacognition: Giving an AI the ability to ‘think’ about its ‘thinking’
  8. Political polarization in Pittsburgh communities is rooted in economic neglect − not extremism
  9. What we get wrong about forgiveness – a counseling professor unpacks the difference between letting go and making up
  10. Rebirth of the madman theory? Unpredictability isn’t what it was when it comes to foreign policy
  11. Why too much phosphorus in America’s farmland is polluting the country’s water
  12. Marine protected areas aren’t in the right places to safeguard dolphins and whales in the South Atlantic
  13. How the polar vortex and warm ocean are intensifying a major US winter storm
  14. How the polar vortex and warm ocean intensified a major US winter storm
  15. ICE immigration tactics are shocking more Americans as US-Mexico border operations move north
  16. ‘We want you arrested because we said so’ – how ICE’s policy on raiding whatever homes it wants violates a basic constitutional right, according to a former federal judge
  17. Dogs can need more than kibble, walks and love − consider the escalating expenses of their medical care before you adopt
  18. Your brain can be trained, much like your muscles – a neurologist explains how to boost your brain health
  19. Rheumatoid arthritis has no cure – but researchers are homing in on preventing it
  20. Feeling unprepared for the AI boom? You’re not alone
  21. Is being virtuous good for you – or just people around you? A study suggests traits like compassion may support your own well-being
  22. Doing things alone is on the rise, and businesses should pay more attention to that – even on Valentine’s Day
  23. Dealing with a difficult relationship? Here’s how psychology says you can shift the dynamic
  24. The rise of Reza Pahlavi: Iranian opposition leader or opportunist?
  25. AI-induced cultural stagnation is no longer speculation − it’s already happening
  26. ‘Expertise’ shouldn’t be a bad word – expert consensus guides science and society
  27. Trump’s insistence on personal loyalty from ambassadors could crimp US foreign policy
  28. Hacking the grid: How digital sabotage turns infrastructure into a weapon
  29. Lebanon’s orchards have been burnt, wildlife habitat destroyed by Israeli strikes – raising troubling international law questions
  30. Companies are already using agentic AI to make decisions, but governance is lagging behind
  31. US turns its back on global efforts for women and children terrorized by violence and conflict
  32. A government can choose to investigate the killing of a protester − or choose to blame the victim and pin it all on ‘domestic terrorism’
  33. When it comes to developing policies on AI in K-12, schools are largely on their own
  34. Bearing witness after the witnesses are gone: How to bring Holocaust education home for a new generation
  35. From ancient Rome to today, war-makers have talked constantly about peace
  36. Antibiotic resistance could undo a century of medical progress – but four advances are changing the story
  37. Filming ICE is legal but exposes you to digital tracking – here’s how to minimize the risk
  38. Federal immigration enforcement near schools disrupts attendance, traumatizes students and damages their academic performance
  39. America’s next big clean energy resource could come from coal mine pollution – if we can agree on who owns it
  40. Despite its steep environmental costs, AI might also help save the planet
  41. Why ‘unwinding’ with screens may be making us more stressed – here’s what to try instead
  42. America’s next big critical minerals source could be coal mine pollution – if we can agree on who owns it
  43. The only thing limiting Taylor Swift’s popularity is partisan polarization
  44. Trump’s stated reasons for taking Greenland are wrong – but the tactics fit with the plan to limit China’s economic interests
  45. The world is in water bankruptcy, UN scientists report – here’s what that means
  46. AI cannot automate science – a philosopher explains the uniquely human aspects of doing research
  47. What ‘hope’ has represented in Christian history – and what it might mean now
  48. Some hard-earned lessons from Detroit on how to protect the safety net for community partners in research
  49. Iran’s universities have long been a battleground, where protests happen and students fight for the future
  50. Why Philly has so many sinkholes