Fat Marmot Week Lets Colorado Vote for Chunky Marmots

Winter is coming, and when you think of hibernating animals, you probably think of bears. However, another Colorado animal hibernates through the winter. Before they hunker down for the colder months, they have to get nice and fat first.

READ MORE: Marmot Hitches Ride to Denver Zoo in Truck’s Wheel Well

Marmots are true hibernators and spend half of the year in a deep slumber. These fascinating animals take a breath every couple of minutes, and their body temperatures drop to the ambient temperature of their underground burrow.

a sloth in a tree

Colorado Marmots Are Getting Fat for Winter

To sleep like a marmot during hibernation, you would have to eat an insane amount of food and get pretty chunky along the way. During the summer months, marmots constantly eat double their body weight, then lose 30 to 50 percent during the hibernation months.

The Marmot Project at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory is celebrating marmots gaining weight while bringing awareness to these amazing creatures with Fat Marmot Week.

READ MORE: Broomfield Police Rescue Marmot From Vehicle

The Marmot Project is a long-term research project that started in 1962 and is the world's second longest-running study of individually marked mammals. This project studies how marmots behave, communicate, adjust, and adapt to changes in the environment.

How to Vote in Fat Marmot Week 2026

Right now, you can vote for your favorite fat marmot in the bracket of eight yellow-bellied Colorado marmots. When it comes to voting for a fat marmot, my vote is going to Open Kite. Only one will be crowned the winner of Fat Marmot Week 2026. Place your vote now at Fat Marmot Week 2026.