Wildlife

Schandelmeier: Alaska marmots fatten up before 8-month hibernation

PAXSON -- There is termination dust on the peaks, typical for early September in the Alaska Range. Expect snow to stay until late June.

But in spite of the white summits, the fall has been fairly mild. Usually the tundra is brown by Sept. 5, the brilliant dwarf birch leaves gone and only the willows with color. On Sept. 8, the colors remained brilliant and the blueberries were still hanging in there, not yet too soft to pick. And, this morning, while out above the brush line, I heard the long drawn-out whistle of a hoary marmot.

Marmots are normally active in early morning and late afternoon. However, this late in the season, they are rarely out for more than a few hours during the warmest part of the day. They spend eight months of the year in hibernation, maybe closer to nine months in the higher portions of their range. In an average 10-year lifespan, they are awake for far less than half of it. By late September, they head into a den with a single entrance, pull in a grass plug to keep in the heat, and enter into a true dormant state. Marmots may awaken in early May, but until the plug at the entrance to their den thaws, they are stuck underground.

Winter dens are usually on exposed, windblown, south-facing slopes so they thaw quickly in the spring sun. Most mating takes place in early May, usually while the animal is still under ground. Gestation is about a month. Young marmots are out of the den within the month and begin feeding on vegetation. They must gain weight quickly during the short alpine summer.

Giant squirrels

In some areas of the Alaska, marmots are found down to sea level, where they have a longer season out of the burrow. Three species of marmots -- hoary marmot, Alaskan marmot, and the woodchuck -- are found throughout the state. There are distinguishable differences between the species, identifiable at a distance by color.

Woodchucks have a brown face, while hoary marmots are quite gray. Hoary marmots also have a white patch just above the nose, something the Alaska marmot lacks. Size is similar.

Marmots are the largest members of the squirrel family. An average adult will weight 10 pounds in the fall. Years ago, my German shepherd caught a male marmot that tipped the scale at 18 pounds.

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I had heard that marmots were good eating, so I cleaned and baked that one. I stuffed him, similar to how one would do a turkey. He was OK, but I will say it didn't taste like chicken. I tanned the skin and made a hat, which lasted for years -- until the next shepherd in line ate it.

The Athabascans in this part of the country used to take marmots just before hibernation. Their fur was thick and reasonably durable, but the fat content was the primary goal. A big marmot, taken in late fall, can yield 3 or 4 pounds of lard.

This suet was put in intestine bladders and saved for winter months. It was light enough to be carried with travelers as they moved from the high country back to winter abodes in Copper River Basin timber country.

Final days before hibernation

Copper Basin is one of the places where marmots are readily available along the roadside. The Paxson area has a few that venture down below timberline. Isabel Pass, north to near Donnelly Dome is also good location, especially along Rainbow Mountain. (Mileposts 208-212 on the Richardson Highway).

The Resurrection Pass trail, between Hope and Cooper Landing, has some good colonies along the higher portions of the trail. A few years ago, I walked the trail and was stopped with my spotting scope watching a half-dozen marmots play and feed along a far slope. Along came a tourist, who stopped to see what I was so engrossed in viewing. One of the closer marmots whistled a long warning as he came up. "What are you looking at?" he inquired.

"Marmots," I said.

"Oh, what sort of bird are they?" Hmmm. That was a tough one to answer.

If you really want to see a hoary marmot, you could get lucky, as long as you get here before the last of the color is gone. Soon, however, the blueberries will be covered with the first permanent snow of season and the marmots will be snug in their burrows until spring.

John Schandelmeier is a lifelong Alaskan who lives with his family near Paxson. He is a Bristol Bay commercial fisherman and two-time winner of the Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race.

John Schandelmeier

Outdoor opinion columnist John Schandelmeier is a lifelong Alaskan who lives with his family near Paxson. He is a Bristol Bay commercial fisherman and two-time winner of the Yukon Quest.

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