Steve,
I like this one. You got the eyes right. I like its looks. Its left feet gives an impression that it wanted to come close to you. The sharp edges of the rocks are also pointing inwards towards the Marmot. The background is well diffused. You have toned down the background rocks well. Looks like the Marmot was down hill. Lying down on your belly would have helped. Thanks for sharing.
Steve, this is a beautifully exposed image with a really nice DOF. I can't tell if it's the fur on the marmot or the photo but he feels a little "oversharpened" to me (probably is the fur.)
I'd suggest taking a little off the left and top of the frame to give him more prominence in the frame and agree with Sabyasachi that lowering to the ground might have given you an even better angle at him.
I like the tighter crop but many not as much particularly the left side. Great idea lowering all the way down to ground level, bg looks good as presented but would have made the little guy stand out even better !!! I like it a lot !!
Thanks for the comments and suggestions. I could've gotten down on my belly but I was in a roadside pull off and didn't want to be in that position if someone pulled in while they were watching the marmot instead of paying attention to me.
Jules,
I like the crop idea but maybe not so tight on his right side. As for the fur sharpening, I went back and forth on that. I decided it was due more to coarse fur than overzealous sharpening. Real answer is probably a little of both.