What are marmots, or the so-called bobak? Small settlements of these furry animals with an unusually funny whistle and an interesting way of life are quite common in the steppe.
Habitats
Representative of the order of rodents - marmot (baibak) is the oldest inhabitant of the steppes of Asia and Europe. Today, their numbers have noticeably decreased due to active human activity, such as plowing steppe territories. These funny animals live in separate areas in Kazakhstan, Ukraine, the Middle Volga region, as well as in the southern regions of the Urals - from the Urals to the Irtysh.
In the Soviet years, during the development of virgin lands, as well as during the implementation of measures against the plague, the number of marmots decreased quite a lot. And only in the last decade it began to grow. Nowadays, nature reserves are organized in some areas where bobaks live. They play a huge role in protecting these animals.
Lifestyle
Marmot (baybak) is a rather large rodent of yellowish-red color weighing up to 10 kg and a body length of about 70 cm. These animals live in burrows, the depth of which sometimes reaches 2 m. From September to March, marmots spend inhibernation. The rest of the year they are on the surface of the earth from sunrise to sunset.
While eating, a couple of animals, standing on their hind legs, watch the area. And when enemies appear, all relatives are informed about this and hide in holes. Baibaks feed on insects and plants such as wild oats, clover, wheatgrass, and so on. During the day, the animal eats up to 1 kg of food. He practically does not use water. The life expectancy of baibaks is on average about 10 years. The main enemies of these animals are wolves, birds of prey and humans.
Valuable fishery
Besides being a very funny and interesting marmot, it is also a very valuable game animal. The skin of these animals imitates the look of expensive furs well, and therefore is in great demand. During international fur auctions, marmot skins are sold out quickly, and at a considerable price. A fur coat made of a bobak will be a wonderful gift for a woman. When harvesting an animal, it is very important not to spoil its skin.
In addition, from one adult animal you can get about 2 kg of tender meat and about 1 kg of valuable fat. The steppe marmot (baibak) is also highly valued for this. The fat of this animal, obtained in the autumn, is used not only for technical purposes, but is also widely used as a high-calorie food product. In addition, it is a proven medicine in the fight against tuberculosis, anemia. Groundhog fat is also very effective for various traumatic injuries.
Hunting
The hunt beginson a marmot (baybaka) from mid-July and lasts almost until the end of August. This whole process takes place in the open steppe or in harvested grain fields. Finding rodents is not difficult. Mounds up to 70 cm high above the minks betray their habitats.
Hunt the marmot more often with a gun. Catching these animals with traps is considered illegal in many countries. Most hunters hunt bobaks for sport, not for their blubber, thick fur, or tasty meat. However, in any case, hunting for this animal requires a sharp eye and reliable weapons. At the beginning of the hunting season, when the groundhog (baybak) is not particularly shy, many manage to sneak up on him for a shot from a smoothbore gun. However, mostly all this happens in the presence of rifled weapons. Shooting at a groundhog is also possible with rimfire cartridges of caliber 5, 6 (small), as well as large-caliber weapons. When the hunter fires, the bobak prone hides in the steppe grass.
