Groundhogs' play ends amid Alpine heat

Rising temperatures in the Alps have stifled the formerly playful behaviour of the Alpine marmot or groundhog, according to a new study. The ongoing heat wave in the Alps is changing the lives of marmots, who are giving up playing, according to the study conducted in the Orvieilles research area, in Valsavarenche (Aosta), in the Gran Paradiso National Park, and recently published in open access in the journal Animal Behaviour. The research, titled "Too warm to play: temperature selectively constrains social behavior in the Alpine marmot, Marmota marmota," is by Park researcher Caterina Ferrari, Diego Rastelli, Maria Paniw, and Achaz von Hardenberg. It is based on data collected as part of the long-term marmot research project active in Orvieilles since 2006. Between June 2023 and June 2025