It’s funny how many different things in nature mimic dance moves. It’s either a cool coincidence, or a testament to how bad we humans are at dancing.
Everyone’s seen the videos of cats hunting and appearing to “shake what their mother gave them,” or even the viral clips of bears scratching their back on a tree and looking as though they are “getting low.”
Now we’ve got a video of two marmots going at one another in the middle of the street, where only the best of fights occur. These rodents, which are basically just large squirrels, aren’t afraid to throw hands. The only problem is that when they do, the result is pretty underwhelming.
And maybe I’m wrong when I say that, because it’s not exactly what you would expect out of a lightweight fight, but it is pretty impressive if you placed it into the “choreographed ballroom dancing” category. The two marmots fighting right in the middle of the street looks like it could be a winning arrangement on Dancing with the Stars.
Marmots are herbivores and generally only eat greenery and plants, but these two marmots are straight up eating punches. I’m not sure if “eating a punch” would be considered vegan, though I’m sure these battling rodents aren’t too concerned about their diets as they exchange hooks.
To be honest, it’s more of a slap fight than anything, and that paired with the manner in which they battle standing up on their hind legs is what makes it look like they’re dancing. The subtle pauses where they stop swinging and extend their heads up into the air definitely screams “dancing for dramatic effect.”
I was actually at a wedding this past weekend and saw two older people dancing almost exactly like this to a Nat King Cole song. They were exactly like these two marmots: nothing too flashy, and just good enough to encourage you to keep watching.
Take a look:
