OK, West Seattle wildlife experts – what’s this?

| West Seattle news | Wildlife

Jennifer e-mailed that photo within the past hour with this note:

I just looked out my front window and saw this guy. Any idea what he is? I live in the Alaska Junction.

We had a few guesses but after checking online imagery, can’t reach a conclusion, so hopefully the many expert wildlife-watchers in WSB-land can. Seems a little far from the creeks to be a beaver. Wandering river otter, perhaps, heading quite far uphill from the water? Co-publisher’s vote is for “woodchuck” (groundhog) but we haven’t found evidence yet that they live in this area. 1:53 PM UPDATE: Comment consensus so far – a marmot.

wseye June 19, 2009 (1:11 pm)

No way! That’s a Marmot. It is only found in the mountains so something is up. Maybe a pet somebody picked up.

wseye June 19, 2009 (1:13 pm)

A Hoary Marmot, if it is a local one:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoary_Marmot

Angelina June 19, 2009 (1:23 pm)

yup. Thats a Marmot. I’ve never seen one in the city, though!

Scott (no, the other Scott) June 19, 2009 (1:26 pm)

Yup, a marmot. We called ’em “rockchucks” when I was a kid in Eastern Washington.

Al June 19, 2009 (1:26 pm)

Nutria?

Mary T June 19, 2009 (1:27 pm)

A fox with mange! Just kidding. My vote would actually be “Adorably cute!”

jsv888 June 19, 2009 (1:27 pm)

Marmot! They make this funny whistling sound. I’ve only ever seen them up at Mt. Rainer. I wonder what he’s doing down here?!

MrJT June 19, 2009 (1:29 pm)

Someone call Carl Spackler !

Peter June 19, 2009 (1:34 pm)

What ever it is, it’s a varmint … and the single best thing I’ve ever seen on WSB! Hyperbole? Perhaps.

Citizen Donkey June 19, 2009 (1:36 pm)

Nice Marmot!!!

flowerpetal June 19, 2009 (1:36 pm)

With that tail, its a marmot, not a nutria. I am guessing that someone had it as a pet and it escaped or was let go (foolish decision).
Keeping wildlife as a pet is illegal and its not likely that someone will come forward to claim it.

wseye June 19, 2009 (1:37 pm)

Marmots are very nice little critters. I’ve even managed to pet one that came to lick the salt off my boots in the North Cascades. They always live above the tree line however, as they are vulnerable to predators where they don’t have long views. The closest natural habitat is in the Cascades around Alpental, so this one didn’t get here on its own. I hope that it will be OK with the dogs and coyotes we have around here. It should an underground den in a rocky landscape nearby – or maybe it just escaped from somebodies house.

CM June 19, 2009 (1:42 pm)

That looks just like the woodchucks (groundhogs or whistle pigs) we had growing up in New England, but I didn’t think they lived out here. Not quite the right shape to be a Hoary Marmot.

Very strange.

Danielle June 19, 2009 (1:55 pm)

Looks exactly like the ground hogs we had in Ohio.

alki_2008 June 19, 2009 (2:03 pm)

Random trivia – The Olympic Marmot is the official “Endemic Mammal” of WA. Although the Olympic marmot still isn’t usual in West Seattle.

Simon June 19, 2009 (2:15 pm)

But how can it be Marmot? They usually live pretty high up.

Jennie June 19, 2009 (2:21 pm)

Might be a good idea to contact PAWS (if he’s still around). He may need to be relocated if he’s not a city creature…

wseye June 19, 2009 (2:22 pm)

Marmots and groundhogs are closely related, so it is hard to tell the difference. Neither should be found in West Seattle, however. Maybe we could get a few more shots so we can do the necessary taxomony, WSB?

Teri June 19, 2009 (2:26 pm)

Do NOT CONTACT PAWS…if they are unable to re-release an animal to the wild, they will kill it (euthanize) as opposed to letting the animal live out it’s life at a sanctuary.

Michelle June 19, 2009 (2:40 pm)

Is it a mountain beaver?!

WSratsinacage June 19, 2009 (2:42 pm)

Please don’t feed it or we will have a problem with Racoons AND Marmots :)

Sasquatch June 19, 2009 (2:44 pm)

There once was a hoary Marmot
Who wore silver because it become it
It was admitted to the U-Dub
For its musical inclinations
And never went back to the forest

wseye June 19, 2009 (2:47 pm)

Nope, not a beaver, look at the tail. In fact that tail is the main difference between a Marmot (long tail) and a Groundhog (short tail). Unfortunately this one looks halfway in between. although I would guess on the side of the Marmot. You can find Marmots less than an hours drive from here in the mountains, while Groundhogs are several hours away in Eastern Washington.
One thing is fairly certain: somebody lost a pet. This isn’t a wild animal.

Sasquatch June 19, 2009 (2:50 pm)

Ahhh, the hoary marmots are sometimes called “whistle pigs”. How cute is that?

meg June 19, 2009 (2:51 pm)

Looks like the rochcucks we had in eastern washington

Amber June 19, 2009 (2:53 pm)

There are marmots living in town in Spokane, WA and Bend, OR – why not in WS? We are after all a collective wildlife habitat.

Dreamland June 19, 2009 (3:04 pm)

Sure looks like a Southern Appalachian groundhog (whistle pig) to me. Either way I kind of envy the person who saw the animal. Too cute!

misty June 19, 2009 (3:16 pm)

Amber, you are right. We had them in Spokane as well.

HunterG June 19, 2009 (3:23 pm)

What the heck is he doing in West Seattle?

Jenny_DB June 19, 2009 (3:24 pm)

If you call Sarvey Wildlife they will relocate him to the Cascades, or a better environment for this cute little creature.

AJ June 19, 2009 (3:26 pm)

Looks fake.
Maybe Stuffed?
Could be a WSB Joke…

onceachef June 19, 2009 (3:28 pm)

That there’s a varmint! LOL

sam June 19, 2009 (3:33 pm)

yeah. someone is pulling our leg, and posted a photo they took in the backyard of their far-flung mountain cabin.

MargL June 19, 2009 (3:44 pm)

It’s definitely not a Dramatic Prairie Dog!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHjFxJVeCQs&NR=1

WSB June 19, 2009 (3:47 pm)

Oh come on, don’t you guys know we are continuously on guard for getting punk’d? We don’t discuss how we verify, but I can tell you, we verify before we post any old thing that shows up in the mailbox – TR

Tom June 19, 2009 (4:02 pm)

We’re going with Mountain Beaver (Aplodontia rufa), AKA “boomer.” Not the first time we’ve heard of one in Seattle; our friend in Ballard had one in her yard once. Mountain beaver is not a marmot, but like the marmot, it is a rodent. A humungous rodent. A rodent of unusual size (RUS).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_beaver

I. Ponder June 19, 2009 (4:06 pm)

Mountain Beaver

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_Beaver

Lyanda June 19, 2009 (4:21 pm)

Sweetie,(Tom–my husband, previous comment)–I’m going to have to go with marmot, though they are definitely less common in suburban places than boomers. Boomers (also called “Mountain beavers”–which is way too confusing because they are not beavers, though marmots, beavers, and boomers are all rodents!) have no tail to speak of. And they are considerably smaller than this big fellow! What a sighting! With its orange-yellow belly, this looks a bit like a yellow-bellied marmot, found on the east side of the state. More likely a hoary, though unusual in either case! Let us know what you find out. (And yes, a large rodent, but hardly a RUS–now a capybara–that’s a Rodent of Unusual Size!)

Paul in Gatewood June 19, 2009 (4:21 pm)

Maybe it was asked to leave Beveridge Place when it became apparent it wasn’t a “service animal”.

tom June 19, 2009 (4:23 pm)

My better half Lyanda may have a point, and after all she is the urban naturalist in the family.

I found a couple of awfully similar photos. Yellow-bellied marmot:
http://www.scarysquirrel.org/vacation/tokopah/marmot1.jpg

Hoary marmot:
http://i.pbase.com/o5/05/650005/1/69440256.rW6DWUrg.Marmot2.jpg

Shibaguyz June 19, 2009 (4:44 pm)

Definitely not a Mountain Beaver (Aplodontia rufa). More likely an Olympic Marmot (Marmota olympus) around here. Right tail, fur and such. Would have to see it closer but definitely a species of marmot.

wseye June 19, 2009 (4:58 pm)

Not a beaver, not even close! The tail is a key identifier. Most likely a Marmot but maybe a Groundhog – they look very similar.

Miiss Monica June 19, 2009 (5:33 pm)

I love this West Seattle Blog. At first I suspected Nutria but after looking at pictures, I think it has to be a Hoary Marmot, but how did it get in Seattle? I hope there are more of them around! I’d like some in my yard in Sammamish!

auntee social June 19, 2009 (5:57 pm)

That’s a Totoro! You are very lucky.

http://images.google.com/images?q=totoro&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi

(pics from “My Neighbor Totoro”, a fabulous anime movie. it’s available through netflix and worth seeing at any age)

shane June 19, 2009 (6:17 pm)

Im not 100% sure as it was VERY early (about 4 am) but I may have seen one of these crossing 35th at Holden a week or so ago (I was thinking it was a groundhog at the time)

living in west seattle since 1985 June 19, 2009 (7:43 pm)

what ever it is, it looks ANGRY. It reminds me of a beaver a little.

steve June 19, 2009 (9:50 pm)

granpaw

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marmot

no likey June 19, 2009 (10:18 pm)

This looks like a beaver — the tail is flat, like a beaver’s.

bob June 19, 2009 (10:28 pm)

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008851726_marmot13m.html

WSB June 19, 2009 (10:38 pm)

Data point, I was in the front row when the governor signed the bill making that designation, with some of the kids on hand. Hmm, maybe I can dig up the picture. We were there, at the Seattle Aquarium, for her signing of the tunnel bill – turned out she had many more to sign after that, including the marmot designation – TR

Karl Coy June 19, 2009 (10:38 pm)

I live in the Jacobson Road area and we had a family of these guys in our back yard last summer.

It is a Mountain Beaver, has nothing to do with not being around water. Or not having a flat tail.

It was confirmed be State Wildlife Personal.
They were no bother they minded the own business

HunterG June 19, 2009 (11:24 pm)

Our Senator, Ms. Gregiore named this species the official endemic mammal of our state.

http://www.washington.edu/burkemuseum/collections/news/marmot.php

wseye June 19, 2009 (11:36 pm)

Karl: Mountain Beavers have virtually no tail. Sorry, but this doesn’t even remotely look like one. If it isn’t a Marmot, then it is a Groundhog, but there is nothing else that matches the taxonomy.

Irishlluv June 20, 2009 (6:45 am)

This is totally a Groundhog (marmota monax), part of the Marmot family. They can be found as far north as Alaska. This shouldn’t be so unusual. I’ve seen lots of these back east. They are harmless, except to your garden! In New England, we’d plant radishes around the edges of our garden to keep these guys at bay from the rest of the yummier stuff. Good luck!

Ron Burgundy June 20, 2009 (8:18 am)

It’s Greg Nichols in a marmot costume.

Huh June 20, 2009 (8:34 am)

Whatever it is it would be likely to die if relocated. 90% of relocated animals die of starvation, dehydration, or lack of shelter. A little known fact from the Fish & Game Department. Leave it alone and at least it has a chance if it did get here on its own some how.

JH June 20, 2009 (8:34 am)

It’s definitely Big Foot.

Jo June 20, 2009 (8:34 am)

I just sent this picture on to my daughter who’s a Naturalist at the Woodland Park Zoo.
If anyone can identify it, she can.

Aa June 20, 2009 (8:36 am)

We’ve spotted these several times down in our neighborhood on Alki. Never did manage to get a picture, but this is the same animal!

wallflower June 20, 2009 (11:04 am)

mountain beaver? really? how do you get yourself dressed in the morning? total marmot.

Trileigh June 20, 2009 (11:06 am)

I’ll vote for nutria – they are found in Seattle and are apparently spreading. (Although I’m not a biologist, it seems better to guess an animal that’s known to inhabit this area rather than one that would be a remarkable rarity.)

I’ll be very interested to get the opinion of the Woodland Park naturalist – thanks for checking with your daughter, Jo.

Lp June 20, 2009 (1:54 pm)

I don’t know many Lyandas but if you are the same Lyanda who is also the Darwin expert, I believe you.

jiggers June 20, 2009 (2:55 pm)

I wonder how that thing taste’s after it’s BBQ’d?

Jiggers June 20, 2009 (5:05 pm)

The Coyotes would make a meal out of that.

I. Ponder June 20, 2009 (6:59 pm)

It’s definitely an Enigma.

Dreamland June 20, 2009 (9:06 pm)

Totoro. LOL! That’s too many kinds of awesome!

chowder slinger June 20, 2009 (9:11 pm)

It’s someones overfed house pet. I go with groundhog or marmot.

justme June 20, 2009 (9:40 pm)

Did someone ask the little fellow who he is? He looks like he had something important to say!

d June 20, 2009 (10:06 pm)

I’m going with mountain beaver though they are squinty, nocturnal burrowers and smaller. Amazing sightings have happenned, and surely, the cutie DOES look like a marmot in stance and face.

Regardless, why do you suppose it knocked over your chairs? ;].

JH June 21, 2009 (1:32 am)

I say marmot. Mountain beavers have very short tails.

And regarding PAWS, I’m pretty sure they only euthanize animals if they’re too injured/sick to survive (usually that’s the sole reason they can’t be released back in the wild). I volunteer there with my daughter for her school service hours, and it’s an amazing place with a wonderful group of animal lovers.

rnl June 21, 2009 (8:10 am)

I love this little guy!

Jo June 21, 2009 (11:01 am)

My daughter who is a Naturalist at the Woodland Park Zoo answered back “… it is a marmot for sure.”
So, there ya go.
Jo

KRC June 21, 2009 (9:47 pm)

I stand corrected, I to thimk it is a marmont,

That’s my final answer

opossumNulu June 22, 2009 (7:35 am)

I think it is a really fat beaver who was gnawing a tree and the tree fell on it’s head and it forgot where it lived and forgot what it was too.

David June 22, 2009 (3:14 pm)

Is that Robin Williams?

WTF June 22, 2009 (9:30 pm)

LOL David. Pretty cute little guy, what ever he is.

Erica July 5, 2009 (11:27 pm)

We too live near the Alaska Junction and saw this or a similar critter in our neighbor’s yard in late June. He was sitting in a different position and we could not see his tail. We tried to get a photo of him, but he was chased by a cat into the shadows before we could. We thought he might be a giant guinea pig, a marmot, a capybara, or a nutria.

Amy July 6, 2009 (8:09 pm)

I saw him yesterday eating our potted strawberries. We are located near the Alaska Junction. He is kinda cute and didn’t seem to mind me watching him. I call him Mr. Muncher. He only ate the ripe strawberries.

Sorry, comment time is over.