Queen Charlotte, the city’s most famous rodent, has died, her keepers say
Queen Charlotte, the city’s most famous rodent, has died, Discovery Place Nature officials said Tuesday.
“We are saddened to share the recent passing of our beloved groundhog, Queen Charlotte, at the ripe old age of nine,” museum officials said on Twitter. “Since 2014, she served as an ambassador of her species and @DPNature.”
After a long career fascinating thousands of visitors, Charlotte retired early this year, a museum spokeswoman said, fittingly, on Feb. 2, Groundhog Day.
Charlotte retired “to enjoy her favorite fruits and nuts,” museum officials said on Twitter on Tuesday.
The groundhog, who shared the same name as her predecessor, made her first weather forecast in private in 2015 before a public debut in 2016, according to Charlotte Observer archives.
Queen Charlotte was so famous she even had a Twitter account.
Groundhogs, “also known as woodchucks or whistle pigs,” survive three to five years in the wild and up to 15 years in captivity, according to A-Z Animals.com.
When Queen Charlotte retired, museum spokeswoman Sarah Wheat said only that the groundhog “is living out her days in comfort and our animal caregivers are focused providing enrichment and her favorite treats. We are not thinking about a replacement right now.”
This story was originally published August 16, 2022 at 4:38 PM.