Yellow-Bellied Marmot

True wildlife | Yellow-Bellied Marmots | Yellow-Bellied Marmots are ground squirrels in the marmot genus. They have a body length between 34 and 50 cm (13.4 - 19.7 inches), a tail length between 12 and 22 cm (4.7 - 8.7 inches) and they weigh between 1.5 and 5 kg (3.3 - 11 lbs).
They are yellowish/brown in colour and their hair has a pale tip. They have distinct yellow markings on the sides of their neck and their underside is reddish/yellow. They have a broad head with a short muzzle and small, furred ears.
They are mainly diurnal and terrestrial but they have been know to climb shrubs and trees. They hibernate each year from September to May but this can vary depending on the elevation of their habitat.
Yellow-Bellied Marmots prefer open habitats such as alpine meadows, steppes, pastures and the edges of forests. They usually occupy elevations at around 2,000m (6,560 ft) but in the Rocky Mountains they can be found at altitudes up to 4,100m (13,450 ft).
They construct their borrows in well-drained soil and they are usually over 1m (3.3 ft) in depth with several entrances and tunnels, although the burrows that they use for hibernation can be 5 - 7m (16.4 - 23 ft) in depth.
They live in small groups that consist of a single adult male and a harem of 2 - 3 adult females. Several of these groups can be found together in a colony. The adult males are territorial but the females behave amicably towards each other.
Yellow-bellied marmots have a single breeding season which begins after they have emerged from hibernation. After a gestation period of approximately 30 days, 3 - 8 young are born in a grass-lined nest. The youngsters begin to leave the nest at around 3 weeks old and they are weaned by the time they are 5 weeks old. They reach sexual maturity at 2 years of age.