We know they call it Bernal Heights, but the yellow-bellied marmot, an animal spotted in the San Francisco neighborhood in June, is usually found at elevations of 6,000 feet or higher, so really had no business there. After someone blew the whistle on the critter, it went to ground, apparently, eluding capture until Wednesday, when it was finally nabbed at Alvarado Elementary School in Noe Valley, according to wildlife rescuer Rebecca Dmytryk.
Noe Valley. That's the lowlands, marmot. Totally out of your element.
A San Francisco Animal Care and Control officer captured the marmot at the school after it was seen running out from under the hood of a car. Animal Care and Control headquarters spokeswoman Deb Campbell said the animal is in good health and has been eating apples. Staff members have noticed that the marmot has been whistling, she said, noting that the animals are nicknamed "whistle pigs."
Dmytryk said a rescuer from her organization will pick up the marmot and take it to the Wildlife Center of Silicon Valley in San Jose for an examination. The animal will then be taken up to the mountains, where she said it likely came from.
Dmytryk said yellow-bellied marmots are often unwittingly transported elsewhere because "they're notorious for going up under hoods of cars after sweet-smelling radiator fluids." She said the marmot likely appears to have traveled to the Noe Valley school in an engine compartment. Dmytryk said the goal is to get the marmot back up into a mountainous region in time for winter, when the species hibernates.