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Hoary Marmot
Yukon Government Photo
Page Index:
The Species: Marmota Caligata
Long and shrill, an alarm whistle pierces the crisp silence of the high mountain valley. The source of the sound stands on an outcrop of bedrock, watching the grizzly shuffling along the open creek bed below. The marmot feels little threat from the distant grizzly but, just the same, it carries out its role as sentinel of the mountains, triggering alarm calls from other marmots, pikas and mountain-dwelling Arctic ground squirrels. As the bear passes out of sight, the quiet returns once more and the marmot slips down over the slope to feed on lush, alpine greenery.
Distribution
Wherever there are mountains with rocky talus slopes and lush green tundra vegetation, hoary marmots are a possibility. Add to this a large chunk of northwestern North America -- from the Rockies (north from Montana and Idaho) to the Pacific coast of British Columbia and Alaska -- and chances of finding hoary marmots increase.
Yukon distribution is a bit more spotty. Hoary marmots are known to span the mountainous territory from the MacKenzie mountains west to Alaska. Northward distribution is more uncertain, although they are common as far north as the Ogilvie mountains. Believed to have survived continental glaciation in mountains to the south of the ice sheet, hoary marmots are probably still expanding their range northward.
Another species, the Alaska marmot (Marmota broweri), may exist in the British and Richardson mountains of the north Yukon. This darker marmot is known from the Brooks Range of northern Alaska and has been found in the mountains south of Kaktovik -- almost to the Alaska-Yukon border. It is closely related to marmots of Asias Kamchatka Peninsula and survived the Ice Age in Beringia -- the northern refugium. Perhaps, in the not too distant future, the range of this marmot and the hoary marmot will come together as hoary marmots expand their range northward.
South-facing mountainsides are the preferred habitat of the hoary marmot. These sites must contain outcrops and boulder-strewn slopes intermixed with rich tundra meadows. Here, at the base of such slopes, with numerous crevices leading to underground burrows, colonies of hoary marmots live in relative peace and security.
Characteristics
Grizzled grey, black and brown, the hoary marmot reminds one of a huge, old ground squirrel. It is, in fact, a member of the squirrel family, laying claim to being the largest of that group. About the size of a house cat, an adult Yukon hoary marmot may weigh 3.5 kg and reach a length of 50 cm, including its 20 cm bushy tail.
In many ways, it has similar features to those of the ground squirrels. It hibernates; feeds on soft, new, green vegetation; and is quite social, living in small family groups known as colonies. Hoary marmots even live in the company of arctic ground squirrels, sharing habitat and food supply with these and other mountain creatures.
Living High on the Rocks
Active life for a Yukon hoary marmot covers a very short period of only four months per year. During the remaining eight months, it is curled up and hibernating with its family while blizzards and -400 temperatures assail the slopes. Locked into their den deep beneath the surface by a plug of frozen soil and debris, the family will not emerge until the warmth of early May. Then, after the seal thaws, activity begins
Out of the hibernation burrow come the mother, father, plus the young of last year and their brothers and sisters of the previous two years. In all, there may be as many as 11 members of the colony. And within a month or less, there may be an additional two to five new members -- the result of mating that took place near the end of hibernation.
The daily round of life for most of the summer will consist of feeding, lazing in the sun, watching out for predators, and playing.
Although there may be many colonies in the area, members of one colony will seldom venture into the others' territory. Instead, members of a colony share a plot of about nine hectares, which the dominant male marks by rubbing a secretion from facial glands on boundary rocks and burrows.
There is little strife within the colony or with other colonies, although the older, dispersing two and three-year-olds may have the occasional fight. More often, hoary marmots feed and play together, searching out their preferred diet of vetches, grasses and sedges. They have favorite patches where these foods are in greater abundance and will spend much of the warmer part of the day feeding, then resting on a sun-warmed rock.
If, however, the day is calm and too hot, members of the colony will retire to the cool, mosquito-free, darkness of the burrow. Otherwise, there is a strong chance of overheating. Marmots, besides having a thick coat of fur that readily absorbs solar energy, have no sweat glands and cannot pant to dispel body heat. As a result, their body temperature increases with the external air temperature. Add to this the increasing insulation as body fat increases and it is obvious that hot summer days are not well tolerated. Hoary marmots are known to stay underground for many days to escape such weather.
Cool, sunny days with strong breezes are marmot days. It is during these periods, with abundant time for feeding and resting, that play is another feature of life. Chasing, jumping around on stiff legs, or "boxing", with faces pointing skyward are a few of the behaviors thought to be play activities. But things can change quickly with the arrival of a golden eagle, fox, wolverine, or human.
Alarm calls ring out across the basin, and the marmots run for refuge burrows located near their feeding areas. By the type of call, they know whether the predator is an eagle or a bear and whether it is close or far away. If close, the marmot disappears like a ghost, silently dropping from sight into the burrow. If sufficiently alarmed, it may not reappear for an hour or more.
Marmots and People
Hunted occasionally by early peoples of the Yukon and Alaska, marmots seldom had to worry about the human predator. Where this did happen to any extent, hoary marmots became extremely wary. Warning whistles may be reduced to the point where the marmot simply disappears into its den without a sound.
Today hoary marmots are protected from being hunted in the Yukon, except by First Nations people. As always, they are a source of pleasant surprise to avid hikers of the 'high country'.
Viewing Opportunities
The hoary marmot is not an abundant animal and the first sign of its presence is not usually a sighting. Sound -- a loud, long, steady whistle -- is normally the way one finds this "old man of the mountains". Once you sort out the echoes from the real source of the sound, a good pair of binoculars may lead your eyes to the silhouette on a rocky ledge.
But watch closely and approach slowly. Otherwise the hoary marmot will disappear in front of your eyes. With luck and care, you may approach to within a few metres of a trusting marmot -- close enough for a good photo using a telephoto lens.
Roads that cross such regions, such as the Top of the World, Dempster, and Haines highways provide a reasonable chance for a sighting. But, unless a marmot pops up nearby, you will likely have to listen and search in ideal habitat before this wary, well-camouflaged mountain-dweller shows itself.