US President, Donald Trump has signed a revised immigration order, which restricts citizens from six countries from entering the country.

According to Bloomberg, those countries were predominantly Muslim countries, including Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen

An administration official confirmed that Trump signed the new order on Monday morning.

Iraq is excluded from the initial list of seven countries in the new order.

Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway said legal residents were always excluded from the entry ban, “but that’s made much more clear now.

“If you have travel docs, if you actually have a visa, if you are a legal permanent resident, you are not covered under this particular executive action.”

Conway also confirmed that Syrian refugees will have the same 120-day ban, as refugees from other countries, until the screening procedures are reviewed.

Recall that a federal court had blocked Trump’s previous immigration order.

Groundhogs, also called woodchucks, are large rodents. They are also one of the 14 species of marmot, or ground squirrels. In fact, they are the largest members of the squirrel family. Most people probably know the groundhog as a weather prognosticator; however, those predictions are a mixed bag.

Size

From head to rump, groundhogs are 17.75 to 24 inches (45 to 61 centimeters) long, according to National Geographic. They weigh around 13 lbs. (6 kilograms), which is about twice the average weight of a newborn human baby. Like other squirrels, groundhogs have long tails that grow around 7 to 9.75 in (18 to 25 cm) long. 

These round creatures look like little bears when they stand up on their hind legs. Groundhogs also have sharp claws that they use to dig impressive burrows in the ground. During the warm months, a groundhog's incisors grow about a sixteenth of an inch (1.6 millimeters) each week to keep up with their frenzied eating schedule, according to the National Wildlife Federation.

Habitat

Groundhogs are found only in North America, from Canada down to the southern United States. They like woodland areas that bump up against more open areas. They dig burrows that can be 6 feet (1.8 meters) deep, and 20 feet (6 m) wide. These underground homes can also have two to a dozen entrances, according to the National Wildlife Federation. Typically, they have a burrow in the woods for the winter and a burrow in grassy areas for the warmer months. Groundhogs keep their burrows tidy by changing out the nesting found inside from time to time.

Habits 

Groundhogs are solitary creatures, and they spend their summers and falls stuffing themselves and taking naps in the sun. They can eat about a pound of food per sitting. 

In the winter, they hibernate. While hibernating, the groundhog's heartbeat slows from 80 beats per minute to 5 beat per minute; their respiration reduces from 16 breaths per minute to as few as 2 breaths per minute; and their body temperature drops from about 99 degrees Fahrenheit (37.2 Celsius) to as low as 37 degrees F (2.77 C), according to the National Wildlife Federation.

A groundhog typically sticks close to home. They usually don't wander farther than 50 to 150 feet (15 to 30 m) from their den during the daytime, according to the Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management.

Diet

These rodents are herbivores, which means they eat vegetation. A groundhog's diet can include fruit, plants, tree bark and grasses. They are known for damaging crops and gardens and many consider them pests.

Groundhogs don't eat during hibernation. They use fat that they built up over the summer and winter month.

Offspring

In February, males will come out of hibernation and search for females' burrows. When he finds one, he heads on in. It is believed that males do this to introduce themselves to possible mates. In the spring, mating season progresses and the females give birth to two to six young after a gestation period of around 32 days.

The babies are blind and hairless, but quickly become mature in just three months or so. When they are mature, they typically leave their mother to dig their own homes. Groundhogs live around three to six years.

Classification/taxonomy 

Here is the classification for groundhogs, according to the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS):

Kingdom: Animalia
Subkingdom: Bilateria
Infrakingdom: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclass: Tetrapoda
Class: Mammalia
Subclass: Theria
Infraclass: Eutheria
Order: Rodentia
Suborder: Sciuromorpha
Family: Sciuridae
Subfamily: Xerinae
Tribe: Marmotini
Genus: Marmota
Subgenus: Marmota
Species: Marmota monax
Subspecies:

• Marmota monax bunkeri
• Marmota monax canadensis
• Marmota monax ignava
• Marmota monax johnsoni
• Marmota monax monax
• Marmota monax ochracea
• Marmota monax petrensis
• Marmota monax preblorum
• Marmota monax rufescens

Conservation status

Groundhogs are listed as least concern for extinction on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species. They are widespread from central Alaska, across Canada and south through the United States to Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana and Arkansas.

Shadow facts

According to tradition, if the groundhog sees its shadow on February 2, there will be six more weeks of winter. This idea gave rise to Groundhog Day. The tradition of relying on rodents as forecasters may date back to the early days of Christianity in Europe, when clear skies on Candlemas Day (Feb. 2) were said to herald cold weather ahead. In Germany, the tradition morphed into a myth that if the sun came out on Candlemas, a hedgehog would cast its shadow, predicting snow all the way into May. When German immigrants settled in Pennsylvania, they transferred the tradition onto local fauna, replacing hedgehogs with groundhogs.

But how accurate is this method of weather prediction? The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, has records from more than 100 years. On Groundhog Day, the club holds a "solemn" ceremony as a groundhog, named Phil, is pulled from a "burrow" in front of TV cameras and cheering crowds. The club says Phil has predicted 99 forecasts of more winter and 15 early springs. According to data from the Stormfax Almanac, Phil's predictions have been correct only 39 percent of the time in his hometown of Punxsutawney.

How much wood?

How much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood? About 700 lbs., according to Cornell University.

Actually, the name woodchuck has nothing to do with wood, or chucking it, according to the Animal Diversity Web. The word woodchuck comes from a Native American word, wuchak, which roughly translates as "digger." (Another name for this animal is whistle-pig, according to the National Museum of Natural History.)

Nevertheless, according to Cornell, a wildlife biologist sought to answer the tongue-twister's question. He measured the volume a woodchuck burrow and estimated that if the hole were filled with wood rather than dirt, the woodchuck would have chucked about 700 lbs. (Woodchucks, however, typically do not chew wood.)

Additional resources

• The Official Site for Groundhogs Day
• Cornell: Groundhog Day Facts and Factoids
• The Humane Society of the United States: What to Do About Woodchucks

An International Affairs Expert, Prof. Charles Dokubo has predicted that the United States President, Donald Trump may be impeached unless he changes his approaches to American ideals.

He spoke at roundtable organised by the Department of Political Science, University of Ilorin on contemporary Nigeria-US relations, saying that President Trump must change if he must last three years in office.

Prof. Dokubo who is of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), Lagos said American is blessed with strong institutions which could condition American leaders to respect the norms.

The Don urged the United States President to understand that election rhetorics do not translate to realities, hoping that the American system would calm the President down in taking decisions that could harm the country.

Prof. Trump whose presentation entitled: “The Phenomenon of Donald Trump in America” recalled that the President ability to work on the sensibility of Americans on immigration issue earned him victory during the poll.

He maintained that mutuality of interest would enable the US to work with Nigeria, noting that President Trump would work with Nigeria despite his election rhetorics.

Prof. Dokubo charged African leaders to put their houses in order through provision of critical infrastructure to reduce the trend of seeking greener pastures abroad.

Also speaking, Prof. Hassan Saliu of Political Science Department, University of Ilorin said whatever President Donald Trump does in Nigeria-US relations would amount to affirmation of US long time unfavourable relationship with Nigeria.

Prof. Saliu who spoke on “Why Nigeria has not benefited significantly from her relations with the USA called on Nigerian leaders to revitalise and restrategise on her relations with the US.

He also stressed the need for Nigeria to address its domestic challenges if it must command respect in the international community.

Prof. Saliu maintained that Nigeria’s Foreign Policy objectives are obsolete and called for robust research funding in fine-tuning the objectives with a view to making Nigeria takes it rightful position in the comity of nations.

In his remarks, the Chairman of the occasion and immediate past Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ilorin, Prof. Bisi Adedayo described the roundtable as academic ritual of the department in contributing to the development of the society.

Earlier in his address, the Acting Head of the Department, Dr. Abdulrasheed Muhammad had explained that the roundtable was organised to learn more about burning issues affecting Nigeria and Africa in the international community.

By Abdulrosheed Okiki