Archimedes Plutonium wrote:

My place seems rife for marmots. Whether it is the pond in the corner,
or whether it is the nearby cornfields, or whether it is lack of dogs or
whether
it is the outbuildings.

Can someone tell me if marmots have any beneficial affect on a fruit
orchard or are they utter pests.

Ah, marmots. That reminds me of the following conversation
in Monkey Island II:

- How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
- A woodchuck could chuck no amount of wood since a woodchuck couldn't
chuck wood.
- But if a woodchuck could chuck and would chuck some amount of wood,
what amount of wood would a woodchuck chuck?
- Even if a woodchuck could chuck wood, and even if a woodchuck would
chuck wood, should a woodchuck chuck wood?
- A woodchuck should chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood, as long as a
woodchuck would chuck wood.
- Shut up!

Sorry Pluto, badgers don't eat marmots. You don't want badgers
in your garden. They are a pest too. They dig up your lawn searching
for worms. Cats, dogs or ferrets are much safer bets if marmots
are bothering you.

S.M.