Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
With their bulky bodies and short legs, porkies are ill-suited to plowing through deep, soft snow,
so their winter feeding forays are apt to cover only very short distances. This means that trees near a
den—especially a communal one—may take a beating and eventually die. While this isn't a serious
problem when porkies are in balance with their habitat, overpopulation can cause substantial damage
for some distance around major den sites.
Although porcupines aren't usually particularly vocal, they have a considerable repertoire of sounds
they can call on when the occasion demands it. Several years ago, for instance, I came across a porky
track in the snow. Curious to know where it led, I followed it for a short distance to a huge old sug-
ar maple, a good three feet in diameter, which had broken off at ground level and blown down. In the
middle of the trunk, between the broken-off roots, was a large hollow leading for some distance up into
the trunk. There the porky had made its den.
The tracks clearly indicated that the porky was at home, so I peered up into the hollow, where, in
the dim interior light, I could just make out the occupant's tail and broad rump, completely filling the
cavity. Like Queen Victoria, the occupant was not amused.
The porcupine was well aware of my presence, and no doubt had detected my approach long before
I reached the den; perhaps to compensate for conspicuously bad eyesight, porcupines have excellent
hearing and a keen sense of smell. Displeased, the porky began to emit a whole range of sounds—
squeaks, grunts, groans, snuffles, and assorted other odd noises. As it continued to mutter, mumble, and
squeak to itself, I was reminded of nothing quite so much as a querulous old man, suddenly awakened
from his nap, who peevishly protests the intrusion. The performance was so ridiculous that I actually
burst out laughing!
Porcupines can be vocal at other times as well. Robert Brander, a National Park Service ecologist
who has done extensive research on porcupines, has documented a fascinating phenomenon. In his re-
search, Brander found that as many as a dozen porcupines may congregate in mid-to-late summer at a
chosen location. Usually this is an old clearing that is growing up and provides a good source of food.
Brander believes that socialization, rather than food, may be the primary purpose of these gatherings.
Coming together in this fashion, he postulates, may be a useful prelude to the breeding season, which
follows in roughly another month. In any event, Brander reports that the assembled porkies are ex-
tremely vocal, uttering a wide variety of sounds.
In addition, porcupines are also reported to have a very shrill, high-pitched cry that some have de-
scribed as a scream. Possibly this is one of the sources of the “screams” often erroneously attributed to
bobcats.
Over the years, I've had many memorable and often amusing encounters with porcupines. However,
what was certainly the most bizarre occurred within a year or two of our dog's contretemps with the
porcupette. It happened in this fashion.
I was driving past a dairy farm and, having grown up on such a farm, slowed down to gain a better
view of a particularly nice-looking herd of Holsteins milling around a feed bunker. To my dismay, a
