MARMOT

any of about 14 species of heavyset, ground-dwelling rodents constituting the genus Marmota, and belonging to the squirrel family, Sciuridae. Marmots are coarse-furred and have small ears, short tails, and strong feet and claws adapted for digging. They are 30 to 60 cm (12 to 24 inches) long without the 10- to 25-centimetre tail and weigh from 3 to 7.5 kg (about 6.5 to 16.5 pounds). The coat may be yellowish brown, brown, reddish brown, or a hoary mixture of white and black. Marmots are found in North America and from the European Alps through Asia, north of the Himalayas. They inhabit open country, in the mountains or plains, and live in burrows or among boulders on talus slopes. They frequently sit upright, keeping watch, and when alarmed they emit a sharp, whistling call. Some, such as the Alpine marmot (M. marmota) of Eurasia, are gregarious and live in colonies. Others, such as the woodchuck (q.v.; M. monax) of North America, are essentially solitary. Marmots are diurnal and feed almost entirely on green plants, sometimes causing considerable crop damage. They hibernate in winter, living on fat reserves accumulated during the summer. The hoary marmot (M. caligata) of the North American northwest and Siberia may hibernate for as long as nine months. Marmots mate soon after they emerge from hibernation. The young (generally four or five) are born in a nest in the burrow; gestation is about a month. The yellow-bellied marmot (M. flaviventris) is an inhabitant of rocky hills and mountains in the western United States and British Columbia. It is yellowish brown with a yellowish belly and white markings between its eyes. An agricultural pest in some areas, it may also carry the ticks that transmit Rocky Mountain spotted fever. The hoary marmot lives high in the mountains of Siberia and northwestern North America. Also known as the whistler because of its piercing alarm call, it is distinguished by the mixed black and white of its head and shoulders and by its black boots. The hoary marmot is eaten locally and is hunted for its hide (for shoelaces) and its fur.