Two Chonky, Mountain-Dwelling Marmots Were Found in the Bay Area. What Were They Doing So Far Away From Their Home?

The two rodents of unusual size, rescued this month, might have hitched a ride in the engine compartment of a vehicle coming down from the mountains, wildlife officials say

Sarah Kuta | Daily Correspondent

September 15, 2026 4:21 p.m.

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Yellow-bellied marmots are alpine specialists who typically live high in the mountains. But recently, two of the furry rodents were spotted much closer to sea level in the San Francisco Bay Area—and wildlife officials are trying to figure out how they got there.

The marmot mystery began September 5, when one of the species was discovered in the city’s Mission District. After San Francisco Animal Care and Control started getting calls from residents of the historic neighborhood, the nonprofit Yggdrasil Urban Wildlife Rescue sprang into action to help the out-of-place critter.

“When the first marmot came in, we couldn’t believe our eyes,” Rae Paoletta, development coordinator for the rescue organization, tells the Reno Gazette Journal’s Siobhan McAndrew. “A marmot in the middle of San Francisco is not something you expect to see.”

It’s not clear how the marmot ended up in the Mission District, so far from its likely home in the Sierra Nevada. But the rescue suspects the creature hitched a ride from Tahoe or some other mountainous region.

“Marmots are famous for climbing inside car undercarriages, drinking radiator fluid, passing out and waking up in far away weird places like San Francisco,” the rescue posted on social media.

The mystery deepened when a second marmot was spotted in the Bay Area, this time in Antioch, a city located about 45 miles northeast of San Francisco. The creature was seen “loitering at a job site,” according to the rescue, which safely captured and transported the animal to its wildlife center.

“This is one of the stranger cases we’ve handled,” a spokesperson for the organization told KRON4’s Amy Larson.

Both animals are physically unharmed but seem a little out of it from their adventures.

“They’re pretty lost,” Lila Travis, Yggdrasil's founder and director, tells the Reno Gazette Journal. “They’re used to living in interconnected colonies, and suddenly they’re alone in a busy urban environment.”

Yellow-bellied marmots are a type of hefty ground squirrel found throughout the West. These social herbivores, which live in groups known as “madnesses,” can weigh up to 11 pounds and reach lengths of more than two feet. They typically have reddish-brown fur on their backs, accented by lighter, tannish fur on their bellies.

Marmots spend the short alpine summers fattening up on grasses, wildflowers and seeds before cold temperatures return. In the fall, they head underground, where they can hibernate for up to eight months.

Rescue staffers are now trying to determine where the marmots came from so they can return them to their proper homes. They suspect the furry creatures may have tagged along with someone returning early from Burning Man—the week-long arts and community event held in the Nevada desert—who stopped in Truckee or Lake Tahoe, or with someone who had recently visited the High Sierra mountain area, which includes parts of Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks.

If Yggdrasil cannot determine the animals’ origins, it may transfer them to the Tahoe Wildlife Center, which can help find a good spot to release the critters, per KQED’s Elize Manoukian.

The recent hitchhikers are a good reminder that motorists traveling through the Sierra Nevada in the spring and summer should take steps to “marmot-proof” their vehicles. The rodents have been known to chew through radiator hoses and car wiring in an attempt to slurp up antifreeze.

“They have a missing electrolyte that they think is going to be satisfied by this radiator fluid, but it’s not,” Travis tells KQED. “It just makes them sick. And they will sometimes be transported to strange places because of the car being driven off.”

The National Park Service recommends washing the outside, undercarriage and engine compartment of your vehicle before heading into the mountains. If you’re going to be away from your car for a while, place a tarp on the ground, drive over it, then use it to wrap the entire vehicle, including the wheel wells.

“Wrapping chicken wire around the vehicle is no longer advised, as marmots have learned to get around the wire,” according to the NPS.

Once you return to your vehicle, the NPS advises looking under the hood to make sure you’re not accidentally transporting any unsuspecting marmots to your next destination. Also check the car’s hoses, belts, electrical wiring, insulation and radiator fluid levels, and look for signs of coolant or brake fluid leakage. After you start the vehicle, keep an ear out for any unusual noises.

Sarah Kuta is a writer and editor based in Longmont, Colorado. She covers history, science, travel, food and beverage, sustainability, economics and other topics.