MARMOT
marmot
(noun) stocky coarse-furred burrowing rodent with a short bushy tail found throughout the northern hemisphere; hibernates in winter
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
marmot (plural marmots)
Any of several large ground-dwelling rodents of the genera Marmota and Cynomys in the squirrel family.
Source: Wiktionary
Mar"mot, n. Etym: [It. marmotta, marmotto, prob. fr. L. mus montanus,
or mus montis, lit., mountain mouse or rat. See Mountain, and Mouse.]
1. (Zoöl.)
Definition: Any rodent of the genus Arctomys. The common European marmot
(A. marmotta) is about the size of a rabbit, and inhabits the higher
regions of the Alps and Pyrenees. The bobac is another European
species. The common American species (A. monax) is the woodchuck.
2. Any one of several species of ground squirrels or gophers of the
genus Spermophilus; also, the prairie dog. Marmot squirrel (Zoöl.), a
ground squirrel or spermophile.
– Prairie marmot. See Prairie dog.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition