A team of UCLA scientists has gone viral after turning to an unlikely platform to help save one of the world's longest-running wildlife studies.
Facing mounting funding pressures, the researchers launched an Onl**ans page called OnlyMarms, where supporters can watch videos of yellow-bellied marmots while helping fund the decades-long project.
Highlights
- A UCLA professor explains why a 65-year wildlife study ended up on an adult platform.
- The viral OnlyMarms campaign features wholesome marmot videos, but its creator says the real reason behind it is far more serious.
- The project, which has tracked yellow-bellied marmots in Colorado since 1962, is the second-longest continuous wildlife study in the world.
The unusual fundraising effort quickly captured the internet's attention, with one user writing, "UCLA scientists turning to marmots for funding is wild. I guess even rigorous research needs a side hustle sometimes."
To understand how a 65-year research project ended up on a platform best known for adult content, Bored Panda spoke exclusively with project lead Professor Daniel T. Blumstein, who explained how the viral campaign came to life.
A team of UCLA researchers launched an Onl**ans account called OnlyMarms to raise money for a long-term wildlife study
Image credits: UCLA
Image credits: rmblmarmotproject
The Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory Marmot Project first announced the initiative on Instagram on June 17, 2026, explaining that the team was turning to the platform out of frustration over federal funding cuts.
While spending another summer observing marmots in Colorado, Professor Blumstein found himself thinking less about the animals' behavior and more about how his team would keep the project alive.
Image credits: Unsplash
He said, "I spend a lot of time sitting in meadows waiting for marmots to do things."
"Normally, I'm thinking about the nature around me or scientific problems I'm trying to solve, but this year I was thinking about how we get funding to keep our 65-year-long project going."
The inspiration arrived in an unexpected way after he and his wife watched the Apple TV series Margot's Got Money Troubles.
"I was pondering the fact that marmots got money troubles... which got me thinking about Onl**ans," he said.
Back at the lab, Blumstein pitched the unconventional idea to his students.
The OnlyMarms page is filled with wholesome videos of yellow-bellied marmots, affectionately known as "whistle pigs"
Image credits: rmblmarmotproject
He recalled, "One student cried out, 'GREAT IDEA,' another said 'OnlyMarms,' and a third grunted."
The team agreed the account would remain entirely family-friendly, using it as both a fundraising tool and a way to introduce more people to wildlife science.
"We are clear about how ridiculous this is; we should be writing papers, not posting videos on OnlyMarms, but we also figured it's another way to reach a new audience that might not know about marmots or our work. So we're really viewing this as a science communication opportunity."
Image credits: KURAOpenclaw
Image credits: rmblmarmotproject
Image credits: Gracie_Shyyn
The unique platform features exclusive, "G-rated" footage of yellow-bellied marmots in Colorado, including videos of the large rodents digging burrows, wrestling, and caring for their pups.
Although the account has generated laughs online, Blumstein said the reason behind it is far less amusing.
Even before recent federal funding changes, securing long-term financial support had become increasingly difficult.
Now, he worries projects like theirs face an even steeper uphill battle.
He explained, "Long-term studies are essential and bring so much to our understanding of the world around us."
"It's a double whammy," Blumstein said, explaining that funding reductions have also affected universities directly.
Professor Daniel T. Blumstein says OnlyMarms is a "science communication opportunity" to reach a wider audience
UCLA has admitted fewer graduate students after losing roughly one-third of the teaching assistantships that traditionally support them.
The project's OnlyMarms page is currently free to join, with supporters encouraged to leave voluntary tips while enjoying exclusive videos that rarely make it into scientific publications.
As news of OnlyMarms spread, social media users embraced the account with equal parts humor and appreciation.
"It's rare to see anyone use Onl**ans for good," one person joked, while another added, "Funding science? Nah. Subscribing to marmots? Apparently that's the economy now."
Image credits: santonii
Image credits: Unsplash
Others praised the campaign's creativity, with one commenter saying, "OnlyMarms might save science."
Blumstein admitted the overwhelmingly positive response has been encouraging, particularly among younger audiences.
"In general, I think many younger folks think this is hysterical whether they donate or not," he said. "Some of my colleagues have understood the real issue, highlighting the crazy funding cuts we're all facing."
He also revealed that many supporters preferred donating directly rather than through the OnlyMarms account, leading UCLA to make it easier for people to contribute straight to the university's marmot research fund.
The project, which has tracked yellow-bellied marmots in Colorado since 1962, is the second-longest continuous wildlife study in the world
Image credits: rmblmarmotproject
Despite the online fascination with chubby rodents, Blumstein stressed that the project's true value isn't the animals themselves but the extraordinary length of the study.
"Marmots are not particularly important to study," he said, before explaining that productive long-term research is what deserves continued investment.
Over more than six decades, the team has uncovered groundbreaking insights into how early-life adversity affects survival, how social relationships influence reproductive success, and how climate change shapes wildlife populations over generations.
Image credits: rmblmarmotproject
"My entire research program on the sound of fear started when I had a baby marmot scream in my hands when I was gently holding it," he said, describing how one unexpected moment eventually transformed into years of influential scientific discoveries.
"If we want to understand the world around us," Blumstein concluded, "we need long-term field studies."
Despite the serious funding concerns behind the project, Blumstein said the internet has also provided plenty of laughs along the way.
Asked about the funniest reaction to OnlyMarms, he shared, "The funniest thing I read was, 'These are Marmots I'd Like to Fund! We need to make a T-shirt!'"
"Science is so underfunded that the marmots had to start an Onl**ans, and it's still more wholesome than half the internet," one user wrote
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