Fat Marmot Week Is Here And You Need To Meet These Competitors Immediately
In the abandoned mining town of Gothic, Colorado, scientists at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory have been tracking generations of yellow-bellied marmots since 1962, building the second-longest-running study of free-living mammals in the world, behind only Jane Goodall's chimpanzee research. Their data on marmot communication, social relationships, and adaptations to climate change has contributed meaningfully to global science, and for years the program was supported by the National Science Foundation. When that funding was cut after three unsuccessful renewal attempts following the Trump administration's sweeping reduction of NSF grants, the RMBL team decided to get creative. First-year master's student Emily Renkey launched an OnlyFans account called OnlyMarms, posting G-rated marmot footage to a rapidly growing audience of people who, it turns out, really want to watch yellow-bellied marmots doing things. The second campaign, now live, is called Fat Marmot Week, modeled on Alaska's beloved Fat Bear Week at Katmai National Park, in which the public votes for their favorite animal as it packs on pounds before winter hibernation and donates to the research program in the process.
The eight competing marmots this year were all given names by the researchers who track them using non-toxic fur dye and small numbered ear tags, and their official bios are extraordinary. Dan's Hat is described as the cool aunt of her family group who did not breed this year and was hoping to be an aunt instead, until a badger ate all of her nieces and nephews. Citroen is a new arrival who has taken his role as stepdad to last year's pups very seriously and is doing his best to bulk up. Open Kite is a self-described girl boss who runs the research site and has declined to weigh in for the contest this year, though the researchers say they will keep trying. Dawn is a devoted father with a quirk: he enjoys the taste of rocks. Stonehenge is the queen of the Bench colony who lost her litter to a hungry badger and has been focusing on self-care since. The marmot named 1 is a proud mama who also enjoys interior decorating and landscaping her burrow. Dandelion is a shy young mother with six pups who sometimes kicks her sister Paper Plane out of their shared burrow when she needs more space. And G, short for Goblin, has a need for speed, runs everywhere instead of walking, and is not afraid of a fight. Voting is open at the Fat Marmot Week official website, and donations support the 64-year study the marmots have no idea they are funding.
Source:https://www.goodgoodgood.co/articles/fat-marmot-week-voting-open-meet-contenders
