Full Breakdown
Colorado’s First “Fat Marmot Week” Highlights Climate-Driven Decline and Funding Crisis
8/21/2026, 7:54:18 PM
Core Event: Launch of Fat Marmot Week
Researchers at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory (RMBL) in Gothic, Colorado, have inaugurated “Fat Marmot Week,” an online voting contest modeled on Alaska’s Fat Bear Week. The event, which begins early in the week, invites the public to view and vote for the heaviest yellow-bellied marmots as a means of raising awareness and soliciting donations for the long-running Marmot Project.
Background & Context
The Marmot Project, a collaborative study between UCLA and the University of Ottawa, has monitored individual alpine marmots since 1962, making it one of the world’s longest continuous mammal studies. Last winter, an unprecedented snow drought—record-low snowpack in the Upper Colorado River Basin—exposed marmot burrows to extreme cold. Researchers observed that two-thirds of the monitored population died during hibernation, with the surviving cohort now gaining weight rapidly to prepare for the next winter.
Data & Statistics
- Initial cohort: over 160 marmots; survivors at season start: 60 (? 60 % mortality).
- Surviving marmots can double their mass to as much as 13 lb (6 kg) before hibernation.
- Human-caused climate change made the snow-drought about 14 times more likely, according to a new study.
- Funding shortfall: RMBL’s UCLA department has lost one-third of its graduate students; the project needs roughly $200,000 for three years, of which about $100,000 has been raised through a meme-coin linked to an OnlyFans channel.
Official Statements & Responses
He noted that the lack of snow cover forced many marmots to die from cold, underscoring the direct link between climate variability and wildlife survival.
Emily Renkey, a master’s student at UCLA, explained that “the snowmelt here impacts the Colorado River which impacts our drinking water,” highlighting the downstream relevance of alpine conditions.
Katie Adler, a UCLA doctoral student, stressed that “people have to find funding in ways that we’ve never really thought of before,” pointing to the meme-coin and social-media outreach as novel revenue streams.
Verbatim Quotes
- “We kind of understand these marmots just by looking at them sometimes, because we can kind of tell who’s who just by how they behave and how they interact with one another,” — Katie Adler, UCLA doctoral student
- “Marmots come out of the ground really skinny, relative to what they look like now, at least,” — Katie Adler, UCLA doctoral student
- “The snowmelt here impacts the Colorado River which impacts our drinking water,” — Emily Renkey, UCLA master’s student
- “People have to find funding in ways that we’ve never really thought of before,” — Katie Adler, UCLA doctoral student
Why It Matters
The dramatic mortality event illustrates how climate-induced snow deficits can jeopardize species that rely on deep hibernation. Because snowmelt feeds the Colorado River, changes in alpine snowpack have cascading effects on water supplies for downstream communities and agriculture. The funding crisis at RMBL also reflects broader cuts to federal research support, threatening long-term ecological monitoring that informs climate adaptation strategies.
What's Next
The voting period will run through late August, culminating in a final round and the crowning of a “champion” marmot. Organizers hope the public’s engagement will secure the remaining funds needed to sustain the Marmot Project for the upcoming summer field season.