Ice gray marmot

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Ice gray marmot
Ice gray marmot (Marmota caligata)

Ice gray marmot ( Marmota caligata )

Systematics
Subordination : Squirrel relatives (Sciuromorpha)
Family : Squirrel (Sciuridae)
Subfamily : Ground Squirrel (Xerinae)
Tribe : Real ground squirrels (Marmotini)
Genre : Marmots ( marmota )
Type : Ice gray marmot
Scientific name
Marmota caligata
( Eschscholtz , 1829)
Marmota caligata range

The ice gray marmot ( Marmota caligata ) belongs to the genus of the marmots ( Marmota ).

features

The ice-gray marmot has ice-gray fur on its shoulders and back; hence its German name. The head body length is 45 to 57 cm. There is also a 17 to 25 cm long tail. The weight of the animals is between 3.5 and 9 kg.

distribution

The animals are native to North America in most of Alaska and from there via the Canadian territories of Alberta , Northwest Territories , Yukon and British Columbia to the US states of Idaho , Montana and Washington .

They live on mountain slopes and alpine meadows and are close relatives of the Olympic marmot ( Marmota olympus ).

Way of life

nutrition

Ice gray marmot in Mount Rainier National Park

Not much is known about food habits. After winter they eat leaves , flowers , grasses and seeds . Some are carnivorous. Even cannibalism is known in a few cases. Ice gray marmots drink daily or eat snow frequently.

Reproduction

The males have several females. After a gestation period of 25 to 35 days, the females usually give birth to two to five young. The boys stay in the underground burrow for around a month before they leave it for the first time. The boys reach sexual maturity in the second year.

Systematics

The ice gray marmot is classified as an independent species within the genus of the marmots ( Marmota ), which consists of fourteen species. The first scientific description comes from Johann F. Eschscholtz from 1829 as Arctomys caligata based on an individual near Bristol Bay in Alaska. The species is classified within the marmots in the subgenus Petromarmota .

Together with the nominate form Marmota caligata caligata and Marmota caligata cascadensis as well as Marmota caligata okanagana , three subspecies of the ice gray marmot are distinguished.

Hazard and protection

The ice gray marmot is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) as not endangered (“least concern”), as it occurs frequently in its comparatively large area of ​​distribution and there are no major threats.

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b c Marmota caligata in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2013.1. Listed by: AV Linzey & NatureServe (Hammerson, G.), 2008. Retrieved October 27, 2013.
  2. ↑ a b c d Dmitri Iwanowitsch Bibikow : The marmots of the world. Marmota (= The New Brehm Library. Vol. 388). 2nd, completely revised and expanded edition. Westarp-Wissenschaften et al., Magdeburg et al. 1996, ISBN 3-89432-426-0 .
  3. ↑ a b c d Don E. Wilson & DeeAnn M. Reeder (eds.): Marmota (Petromarmota) caligata in Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed).
  4. ↑ a b Janet K. Braun, T. Scott Eaton, Jr., Michael A. Mares: Marmota caligata (Rodentia: Sciuridae) . In: Mammalian Species . tape 43 , 2011, p. 155-171 ( abstract ).

literature

  • Janet K. Braun, T. Scott Eaton, Jr., Michael A. Mares: Marmota caligata (Rodentia: Sciuridae) . In: Mammalian Species . tape 43 , 2011, p. 155-171 ( abstract , full text ).
  • Dmitri Iwanowitsch Bibikow : The marmots of the world. Marmota (= The New Brehm Library. Vol. 388). 2nd, completely revised and expanded edition. Westarp-Wissenschaften et al., Magdeburg et al. 1996, ISBN 3-89432-426-0 .

Web links

Commons : Ice gray marmot ( Marmota caligata )  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files