Rock chuck, Whistle pig
Yellow-bellied marmots are rodents similar to squirrels, but bigger. They have grizzled brownish fur and a yellow belly, with a whitish spot between their eyes. Their ears are small and round and they have a short white muzzle with a black nose. Their bodies are heavy-set and they have short legs and a reddish-brown furry tail.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
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FolivoreIn zoology, a folivore is a herbivore that specializes in eating leaves. Mature leaves contain a high proportion of hard-to-digest cellulose, less ...
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GranivoreSeed predation, often referred to as granivory, is a type of plant-animal interaction in which granivores (seed predators) feed on the seeds of pla...
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OmnivoreAn omnivore is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and ani...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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FossorialA fossorial animal is one adapted to digging which lives primarily but not solely, underground. Some examples are badgers, naked mole-rats, clams, ...
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ZoochoryZoochory animals are those that can disperse plant seeds in several ways. Seeds can be transported on the outside of vertebrate animals (mostly mam...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
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ViviparousAmong animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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BurrowingA burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to create a space suitable for habitation, temporary refuge, or as a byproduct ...
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PolygynyPolygyny is a mating system in which one male lives and mates with multiple females but each female only mates with a single male.
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ColonialColonial animals live in large aggregations composed of two or more conspecific individuals in close association with or connected to, one another....
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Dominance hierarchyA dominance hierarchy (formerly and colloquially called a pecking order) is a type of social hierarchy that arises when members of animal social gr...
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HibernatingHibernation is a state of minimal activity and metabolic depression undergone by some animal species. Hibernation is a seasonal heterothermy charac...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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Yellow-bellied marmots have a wide range throughout Canada and the western United States, as far to the north as Alberta in Canada and south central British Columbia and as far to the south as the Sierra Nevada in southern California, Nevada, southern Utah, and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in northern New Mexico. They generally live in fairly warm, dry habitats which are at low to mid elevation. They usually inhabit open territory, such as steppes, alpine meadows, fields or pastures. They use talus and rocky areas for cover, and if possible they will usually build burrows under rocky areas.
Yellow-bellied marmots are primarily diurnal and terrestrial. They can live in colonies, or as single or paired animals. Their basic social structure is one male with two or three females. Male marmots are territorial, and will aggressively defend their harem. The females are not agonistic, and will share the raising of offspring within the harem. These animals spend around 80% of their time in burrows in winter hibernation, which lasts about eight months from early September until May, but may vary somewhat from year to year. A marmot’s time above ground is mostly spent sunning itself, while its head is in an alert position. This species’ social interactions with each other are either agonistic or amicable, the latter including grooming, play and greeting behavior. The agonistic behavior includes social mounting, alert behavior, fighting and chasing. Amicable interactions occur between those individuals who share a burrow, while agonistic ones take place with those from different burrows.
Yellow-bellied marmots are herbivores (folivores and granivores) and eat a wide range of plants, including grasses, forbs and flowers, as well as large numbers of seeds in late summer.
This species has a "harem-polygynous" system of mating in which males reproduce with two or three mates during the same time period. The breeding season is within the first two weeks following winter hibernation. Most Yellow-bellied marmots mate during May and June. The gestation period is for about 30 days, 3 to 8 pups in a litter. The young start to leave their nest at about 3 weeks of age and are weaned by 5 weeks old. The adult male will drive out his male offspring when they wake from hibernation. Females are allowed to stay in the group. Sexual maturity is reached at two years old, although these animals do not mate until they are three years old.
There are currently no significant threats to Yellow-bellied marmots. Some people consider them a pest, but human hunting does not affect the stability of populations. However, habitat destruction and pollution are always a threat.
No estimate of population size is available for this species. Currently this species’ numbers are stable and it is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List.
As seed predators, this species may act as habitat engineers, contributing to the composition and density of plant communities within their range. They are also important prey for a range of terrestrial and aerial predators. Once abandoned, their burrows probably provide important habitat for other species of a fossorial or semi-fossorial type.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...