Fans of Colorado’s marmot population are going to have a new way to enjoy the little critters. Colorado is going to host its first annual Fat Marmot Week (yes, a nod to Alaska’s Fat Bear Week), and they are drumming up interest in a unique way.
Organizers have launched a subscription service through OnlyFans… yes, that OnlyFans… called OnlyMarms, which will give members an up-close-and-personal look at the daily lives of some of Colorado‘s marmots, according to the Denver Post.
The Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory is hosting the event, and they are hoping to increase awareness about the marmot, which is the largest species of ground squirrel. Of course, the name alone is probably doing a lot of the heavy lifting in generating buzz for the event. But the event is gaining traction, and it has even been covered by Today.
Want to learn more about the stars of Fat Marmot Week and OnlyMarms? Here’s everything we know.
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Fat Marmot Week Starts Now
The Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory announced Fat Marmot Week back in May 2026. “Introducing the inaugural Fat Marmot Week, a competition between the largest true hibernators on earth to see who can put on the most weight,” the Instagram post read.
“This summer, the marmots of RMBL will be foraging their hearts out to decide on who will be crowned the fattest of them all, and more importantly, who will survive the winter ahead.”
The post immediately went viral, racking up over 98,000 likes.
Funding Cuts Inspired the Cheeky Idea
Dr. Daniel Blumstein spoke today about the plan, sharing how his team—who hilariously call themselves “the Marmateers” — came up with the idea after budget cuts put their study of yellow-bellied marmots in jeopardy.
But Dr. Blumstein said it was one of his students who came up with the clever OnlyFans angle, yelling out “OnlyMarms” as he shared suggestions on how they could raise money to continue their important research. People can follow the OnlyMarms account by visiting OnlyFans and signing up.
According to the info section on the account, registration is free and gives you access to all kinds of candid marmot footage. People can also make donations, which will go directly to the Marmot Project.
Fat Marmot Week Voting Begins at the End of August
The Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory began announcing the contenders for Fat Marmot Week during the last week of July. The organization will follow the marmots for most of August, sharing important information about each contender before opening voting up on Aug. 24, 2026.
Voting will remain open until Aug. 29, 2026. After the votes are tallied, the first annual fattest marmot king or queen will be crowned. While the marmots themselves won’t actually win a cash prize, they will get the satisfaction of being the rodent that is best prepared to survive the winter ahead.
The humans running the contest will also be winners, since they will hopefully have raised enough money with this contest to continue their research until next year.
