{"id":55169,"date":"2018-11-29T06:13:59","date_gmt":"2018-11-29T13:13:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=55169"},"modified":"2026-03-06T14:16:44","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T20:16:44","slug":"yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-with-a-pale-face-in-northern-utah","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2018\/11\/29\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-with-a-pale-face-in-northern-utah\/","title":{"rendered":"Yellow-bellied Marmot Pup With A Pale Face In Northern Utah"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazyload aligncenter wp-image-171384 size-full\" title=\"Yellow-bellied Marmot pup with a pale face, Box Elder County, Utah\" src=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-pale-face-mia-mcpherson-6393.jpg\" data-orig-src=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-pale-face-mia-mcpherson-6393.jpg\" alt=\"Yellow-bellied Marmot pup with a pale face, Box Elder County, Utah\" width=\"900\" height=\"582\" srcset=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27900%27%20height%3D%27582%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20900%20582%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27900%27%20height%3D%27582%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-pale-face-mia-mcpherson-6393-200x129.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-pale-face-mia-mcpherson-6393-400x259.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-pale-face-mia-mcpherson-6393-600x388.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-pale-face-mia-mcpherson-6393-768x497.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-pale-face-mia-mcpherson-6393.jpg 900w\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-orig-sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Yellow-bellied Marmot pup with a pale face &#8211; Nikon D500, f9, 1\/1000, ISO 400, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p>I haven&#8217;t seen a Yellow-bellied Marmot in quite some time because they start their hibernation around September but that doesn&#8217;t mean I don&#8217;t think about them quite often.<\/p>\n<p>When I travel past places where I normally see marmots I always look for them even when I know that they are safely and warmly snuggled into their underground burrows.<\/p>\n<p>This past spring I had so much fun photographing marmot pups that I felt like sharing photos of one that I thought was special.<\/p>\n<p>At one of the burrows where I photographed Yellow-bellied Marmot pups in the spring there was one pup of the five that had a paler face than the other four had and I thought that was interesting.<\/p>\n<p>I couldn&#8217;t tell the other four apart at all but this one stood out and I photographed it quite often. I&#8217;ve wondered if this pup will have a pale face as an adult too.<\/p>\n<p>I know I&#8217;ll keep an eye out for a pale faced marmot in that area come spring but this pup will probably have moved away from the burrow it was born in especially if it is a male.<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;ve been hoping for years to be able to photograph <a href=\"https:\/\/www.inaturalist.org\/taxa\/46086-Marmota-flaviventris\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Yellow-bellied Marmots<\/span><\/a> with snow in the images, maybe, just maybe, this coming spring I&#8217;ll have an opportunity to do just that. Perhaps I&#8217;ll even find another pale faced pup that I can photograph in the snow.<\/p>\n<p>Life <em>is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n<p>Mia<\/p>\n<p>Click <a href=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/yellow-bellied-marmot-images\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Yellow-bellied Marmot photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At one of the burrows where I photographed Yellow-bellied Marmot pups in the spring there was one pup of the five that had a paler face than the other four had and I thought that was interesting. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":171384,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1148,26,231],"tags":[5772,4054,4098,7482,5854,2241,4984,9594,4107,11852,4470,165,4236,4029,4193],"class_list":["post-55169","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-box-elder-county-utah","category-utah","category-yellow-bellied-marmots","tag-baby","tag-burrow","tag-desert","tag-face","tag-marmot","tag-marmota-flaviventris","tag-marmots","tag-pale","tag-pup","tag-ranchlands","tag-rocks","tag-spring","tag-walking","tag-yellow-bellied-marmot","tag-young"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-pale-face-mia-mcpherson-6393.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-elP","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":50831,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2018\/02\/02\/yellow-bellied-marmots-on-groundhog-day\/","url_meta":{"origin":55169,"position":0},"title":"Yellow-bellied Marmots on Groundhog Day","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"February 2, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Punxsutawney Phil can have the spotlight today, our Yellow-bellied Marmots will have their time in the sun soon enough.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Box Elder County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Box Elder County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/box-elder-county-utah\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Curious Yellow-bellied Marmot, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-rocks-mia-mcpherson-0224.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-rocks-mia-mcpherson-0224.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-rocks-mia-mcpherson-0224.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-rocks-mia-mcpherson-0224.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":56459,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/03\/07\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-warming-up-on-the-rocks\/","url_meta":{"origin":55169,"position":1},"title":"Yellow-bellied Marmot Pup Warming Up On The Rocks","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 7, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Yellow-bellied Marmots are also called \"Whistle Pigs\" and \"Rock Chucks\" so I have to wonder should I call their pups \"Whistle Piglets\" and \"Rock Chucklets\" or just call them cute and adorable?","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Box Elder County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Box Elder County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/box-elder-county-utah\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Yellow-bellied Marmot pup warming up on some rocks, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-mia-mcpherson-4970.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-mia-mcpherson-4970.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-mia-mcpherson-4970.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-mia-mcpherson-4970.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":101349,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/04\/04\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-in-a-crack-in-some-rocks\/","url_meta":{"origin":55169,"position":2},"title":"Yellow-bellied Marmot Pup In A Crack In Some Rocks","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 4, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"I was delighted to find and photograph a Yellow-bellied Marmot pup peeking out of a crack in some lichen-covered rocks on the 1st of April in northern Utah.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Box Elder County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Box Elder County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/box-elder-county-utah\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Yellow-bellied Marmot pup in a crack in the rocks, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-in-a-crack-mia-mcpherson-8888.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-in-a-crack-mia-mcpherson-8888.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-in-a-crack-mia-mcpherson-8888.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-in-a-crack-mia-mcpherson-8888.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":56702,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/03\/18\/yellow-bellied-marmot-family-in-early-spring\/","url_meta":{"origin":55169,"position":3},"title":"Yellow-bellied Marmot Family In Early Spring","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 18, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"The Yellow-bellied Marmot pup spent most of its time exploring the area around its burrow, climbing up and down the rocks, sitting, standing, scratching its fur, looking around and being a marmot pup in the wild where they belong.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Box Elder County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Box Elder County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/box-elder-county-utah\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Yellow-bellied Marmot pup sitting on rocks near its burrow, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-half-standing-mia-mcpherson-1638.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-half-standing-mia-mcpherson-1638.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-half-standing-mia-mcpherson-1638.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-half-standing-mia-mcpherson-1638.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":46622,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2017\/05\/06\/yellow-bellied-marmot-with-pups\/","url_meta":{"origin":55169,"position":4},"title":"Yellow-bellied Marmot With Pups","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 6, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday I was able to photograph a Yellow-bellied Marmot with pups, these are photos I have wanted to take for years but until now haven't been able to create.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Box Elder County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Box Elder County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/box-elder-county-utah\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Yellow-bellied Marmot pup near a shallow cave, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-mia-mcpherson-0506.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-mia-mcpherson-0506.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-mia-mcpherson-0506.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pup-mia-mcpherson-0506.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":80079,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/03\/01\/yellow-bellied-marmot-pups\/","url_meta":{"origin":55169,"position":5},"title":"Yellow-bellied Marmot Pups","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 1, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"March is when I usually see my first of the year Yellow-bellied Marmot awake and above ground here in northern Utah.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Box Elder County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Box Elder County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/box-elder-county-utah\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Yellow-bellied Marmot pups at the entrance to their burrow, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-babies-mia-mcpherson-8694.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-babies-mia-mcpherson-8694.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-babies-mia-mcpherson-8694.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/yellow-bellied-marmot-babies-mia-mcpherson-8694.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55169","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55169"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55169\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/171384"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55169"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55169"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55169"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}