In 2019, Delaware resident Jeff Permar faced a daily conundrum: tomatoes gnawed, corn on the cob halved, broccoli gone. Someone was raiding his garden. To find the culprit he installed a motion sensor camera.
The result was surprising. A marmot appeared in front of the camera, calm and determined, grabbing the vegetables and starting to eat them while staring straight into the camera. Jeff named her Chunk. At the beginning the frustration was inevitable, but the animal’s almost theatrical attitude soon changed the cards on the table.
From vegetable thief to social celebrity
Chunk didn’t just steal. She stopped, munched calmly and seemed almost aware of the lens aimed at her. Jeff began sharing videos online. In a few months the marmot became a phenomenon. Today the “Chunk The Groundhog” channel has 175 thousand subscribers on YouTube and 769 thousand followers on Instagram.
Over time, the story expanded. Chunk brought with him his companion Nibbles and then little Nugget, Chip and Chibbles. What was a single foray has become a true family saga. Fans now call them “The Chunks”, following their daily tastings as if they were episodes of a series.
A change of perspective
Marmots are known for being skilled diggers: they build tunnels up to two meters deep and tens of meters long, easily managing to get around fences and barriers. Jeff initially tried to protect the garden with wooden structures and higher nets, but the marmot always found a way through.
At that point he changed his approach. Instead of fighting the animal, he created a second garden dedicated exclusively to Chunk and his family. A choice that, at least for now, works: the marmots frequent the area intended for them, leaving the rest of the crops intact.
Jeff argues that the earth does not belong only to humans. Through videos, he talks about a possible form of coexistence with wildlife, transforming a domestic conflict into a shared project. Every day, millions of views show groundhogs munching on zucchini and corn with surprising ease. What began as a repeated theft has become a digital story that combines nature, irony and environmental awareness. And Chunk, with his gaze fixed on the camera, continues to conquer the audience, one bite at a time.
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