In the former Soviet Union, marmots are used for fur, medicine, food, and of course observational enjoyment. Central Asian marmots carry plague, thus the great Russian interest in marmot biology. Outside Moscow, a world famous fur farm is experimenting with raising marmots for their fur. To date, they've had considerable success breeding them in captivity and selecting for certain fur colors and quality. In Switzerland, monuments are created to marmots.
Many countries honor marmots on postage stamps.
Comic book stories have been written about some lucky marmots. There is a big international meeting of marmotologists every three of years. The first was in Italy, the second in France, and the third in Russia. The next meeting will be in Austria in 2000. Stanford University Press, Stanford.