What type of animal are marmots?
Marmots are members of the genus Marmota, in the rodent family Sciuridae (squirrels). Marmots are generally large ground squirrels. Those most often referred to as marmots tend to live in mountainous areas such as the Alps, northern Apennines, Carpathians, Tatra, and Pyrenees in Europe, the Rockies, the Black Hills and the Sierra Nevada in the United States, Northern Canada, Deosai plains in Pakistan and Ladakh in India. However, the groundhog is also properly called a marmot, while the similarly-sized but more social prairie dog is not classified in the genus Marmota but in the related genus Cynomys. Marmots typically live in burrows, and hibernate there through the winter. Most marmots are highly social, and use loud whistles to communicate with one another, especially when alarmed. The name marmot comes from French marmotte, from Old French marmotan, marmontaine, from Old Franco-Provençal, from Low Latin mures montani “mountain mouse”, from Latin mures monti, from Classical Latin mu
Marmots are large, about the size of a housecat, charismatic sciurid rodents found in the Northern Hemisphere. The only US holiday named after an animal, Groundhog Day, is named after a marmot. Visitors to many alpine parks and recreational areas in North America, Europe, and Asia see and are entertained by marmots in their natural habitats. In some parts of the world marmot meat is a delicacy and their fur is prized. And, marmot’s behavior, ecology, physiology, and population biology is studied throughout the world. The Marmot Burrow is your single resource for marmot-related popular and scientific information. The Burrow is periodically up-dated with references, diagrams, photographs, and tape-recordings. http://www.marmotburrow.ucla.edu/ All marmots live in the northern hemisphere. Each species account contains the location, status, and a brief behavioral and ecological sketch. Marmots live in a variety of social systems
Marmots are generally large ground squirrels. Those most often referred to as marmots tend to live in mountainous areas such as the Alps, northern Apennines, Carpathians, Tatra, and Pyrenees in Europe, the Rockies, the Black Hills and the Sierra Nevada in the United States, Northern Canada, Deosai plains in Pakistan and Ladakh in India. However, the groundhog is also properly called a marmot… Marmots typically live in burrows, and hibernate there through the winter. Most marmots are highly social, and use loud whistles to communicate with one another, especially when alarmed. The name marmot comes from French marmotte, from Old French marmotan, marmontaine, from Old Franco-Provençal, from Low Latin mures montani “mountain mouse”, from Latin mures monti, from Classical Latin mures alpini “Alps mouse”. Marmots mainly eat greens. They eat many types of grasses, berries, lichens, mosses, roots and flowers. Sources: http://en.wi
