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Outdoors | Fat Marmot Week is here! Meet the Colorado…
Monday, August 24th 2026

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Fat Marmot Week is here! Meet the Colorado rodents vying for chubby champion.

The competition starts with eight contenders, but only one will be crowned the people’s choice and Fat Marmot Week champion

Colorado's first Fat Marmot Week, Aug. 24-28, seeks to raise awareness about the yellow-bellied marmot, which gains girth as it grazes in alpine meadows during the summer months. The chonky critters live in Gothic where researchers with the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory study their behaviors. Pictured: marmots Dawn (left) and Dan's Hat. (Provided by Daniel Blumstein)
Colorado’s first Fat Marmot Week, Aug. 24-28, seeks to raise awareness about the yellow-bellied marmot, which gains girth as it grazes in alpine meadows during the summer months. The chonky critters live in Gothic where researchers with the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory study their behaviors. Pictured: marmots Dawn (left) and Dan’s Hat. (Provided by Daniel Blumstein)
Staff portrait of Tiney Ricciardi on May 28, 2026, in Denver. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)
By | cricciardi@denverpost.com | The Denver Post
PUBLISHED: | UPDATED:
Getting your player ready...

Whatap furry and round and taking the internet by storm this summer? Behold, the contenders for Colorado’s first !

In July, researchers with the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory’s Marmot Project announced their plans to host a competition similar to Fat Bear Week, but featuring the state’s chonkiest rodent, the yellow-bellied marmot. They also unveiled an OnlyMarms page, hosted on the adult site OnlyFans as a tongue-in-cheek effort to raise money to fund their research amid federal grant cuts.

Colorado’s chonkiest critters are getting their own OnlyFans account

The projects immediately went viral, due in no small part to how adorable the animals are. OnlyMarms, which accepts tips in exchange for G-rated footage of the rodents in the wild, has since raised $6,700 from supporters, said Katie Adler, a Ph.D candidate at the University of California, Los Angeles and one of the Marmot Project researchers.

“I think people love to have something to root for, and with the current state of long-term funding, people have really rallied behind us,” she said by email. “People also just love cute, fat animals, and marmots really take the cake with that!”

Hopefully marmot mania endures because the time has come to vote on "the madness," a term that refers to a group of marmots. ()

Fat Marmot Week kicks off Monday with its first round of bracket-style competition, followed by additional rounds on Wednesday and Friday. The winner will be announced Saturday. Fans can head to to cast their votes; no registration required.

The competition starts with eight contenders, but only one will be crowned the people’s choice and Fat Marmot Week champion. Researchers will also unveil which marmot gained the most mass during its summer of grazing on grasses and wildflowers.

Meet the marms below. And feel free to raise a toast with Denver Beer Co.'s limited release . The brewery will donate $1 from every pint and crowler sold to the Marmot Project.

Colorado's first Fat Marmot Week, Aug. 24-28, seeks to raise awareness about the yellow-bellied marmot, which gains girth as it grazes in alpine meadows during the summer months. This marmot is named Stonehenge, a megalith in her own right. (Provided by Daniel Blumstein)
This marmot is named Stonehenge, a megalith in her own right. (Provided by Daniel Blumstein)

Stonehenge

Researchers call Stonehenge “big mama and queen of the Bench colony matriline." She has no patience for bikers and isn’t afraid to show it. She once reportedly yelled at some bikers 3,000 times in one hour. (Can you hear the high-pitched whistle?) Though Stonehenge reproduced this year, she unfortunately lost her litter to a hungry badger. “Never phased, she’s been focusing on self-care since then and is gaining mass nicely!” the competition website says.

Colorado's first Fat Marmot Week, Aug. 24-28, seeks to raise awareness about the yellow-bellied marmot, which gains girth as it grazes in alpine meadows during the summer months. This marmot is named Dawn and he is one of the few males in the competition. (Provided by Daniel Blumstein)
This marmot is named Dawn and he is one of the few males in the competition. (Provided by Daniel Blumstein)

Dawn

Dawn is a very special boy who enjoys the taste of rocks, researchers say -- and he's a busy boy at that. He is a father to many of the litters over the past five years and watches carefully over his pups while they play. Every year, his first order of business is to travel across his territory and check in on his ladies.

Colorado's first Fat Marmot Week, Aug. 24-28, seeks to raise awareness about the yellow-bellied marmot, which gains girth as it grazes in alpine meadows during the summer months. This marmot is named Dan's Hat. The marmots are named for the marking that researchers at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory give each marmot using nontoxic dye. (Provided by Brian Booher)
This marmot is named Dan's Hat. The marmots are named for the marking that researchers at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory give each marmot using nontoxic dye. (Provided by Brian Booher)

Dan’s Hat

Dan’s Hat is known as the cool aunt who’s part of Stonehenge’s matriline. Or at least she was until a badger ate all of her nieces and nephews. Matrilines form when adult females let their daughters stay in the social group instead of dispersing, according to the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory.

Colorado's first Fat Marmot Week, Aug. 24-28, seeks to raise awareness about the yellow-bellied marmot, which gains girth as it grazes in alpine meadows during the summer months. This marmot is named Open Kite. Marmots are named for the markings that researchers at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory give the animals using nontoxic dye. (Provided by Laura Green)
This marmot is named Open Kite. Marmots are named for the markings that researchers at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory give the animals using nontoxic dye. (Provided by Laura Green)

Open Kite

Open Kite is the “girl boss who runs the RMBL townsite,” says the website. With no male to mate with, she was able to allocate all of her energy to self-maintenance. Researchers say they are proud of her mass gain, but that she’s declined to weigh in for the contest this year. She can still win the people’s vote, though.

Colorado's first Fat Marmot Week, Aug. 24-28, seeks to raise awareness about the yellow-bellied marmot, which gains girth as it grazes in alpine meadows during the summer months. This marmot is named Citroen and he's a new addition to the Gothic colony. (Provided by Daniel Blumstein)
This marmot is named Citroen and he's a new addition to the Gothic colony. (Provided by Daniel Blumstein)

Citroen

Citroen is a new addition to the marmot colony in Gothic, first spotted in late May of this year. As Open Kite’s new man, Citroen has taken his role as stepdad to last year's pups very seriously. Snaps for that dad bod!

Colorado's first Fat Marmot Week, Aug. 24-28, seeks to raise awareness about the yellow-bellied marmot, which gains girth as it grazes in alpine meadows during the summer months. This marmot is named 1. Will she come in first place and be crowded the fattest marmot of them all? (Provided by Katie Adler)
This marmot is named 1. Will she come in first place and be crowded the fattest marmot of them all? (Provided by Katie Adler)

1

One is one proud mama and extremely watchful of her babies. When not on the lookout, 1 enjoys landscaping and decorating her burrow which she shares with another mother, 2, according to her bio.

Colorado's first Fat Marmot Week, Aug. 24-28, seeks to raise awareness about the yellow-bellied marmot, which gains girth as it grazes in alpine meadows during the summer months. This marmot is name Dandelion, fitting since marmots' diet consist of grasses and wildflowers. (Provided by Katie Adler)
This marmot is name Dandelion, fitting since marmots' diet consist of grasses and wildflowers. (Provided by Katie Adler)

Dandelion

A shy queen and young mother of six pups, Dandelion can often be found soaking up some sun on her favorite rock. Researchers say she’s kind enough to share her burrow with her sister, Paper Plane, but knows boundaries. Sometimes she’ll kick out family when she needs more space.

Colorado's first Fat Marmot Week, Aug. 24-28, seeks to raise awareness about the yellow-bellied marmot, which gains girth as it grazes in alpine meadows during the summer months. This marmot is named G, short for Goblin. And he will fight you if you threaten his ladies. (Provided by the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory)
This marmot is named G, short for Goblin. And he will fight you if you threaten his ladies. (Provided by the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory)

G

G -- full name Goblin -- is known as a loud and proud marmot who is unafraid to fight, literally, for his ladies. He has a need for speed and no time for walking. “He runs from burrow to burrow at his colony, but that doesn’t seem to stop him from packing on the pounds,” the website says.

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