The snowshoe hare (''Lepus americanus''), also called the varying hare or snowshoe rabbit, is a species of
hare
Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores, and live solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are able to fend for themselves shortly after birth. The ge ...
found in
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
. It has the name "snowshoe" because of the large size of its hind feet. The animal's feet prevent it from sinking into the snow when it hops and walks. Its feet also have fur on the soles to protect it from freezing temperatures.
For
camouflage
Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the ...
, its fur turns white during the winter and rusty brown during the summer. Its flanks are white year-round. The snowshoe hare is also distinguishable by the black tufts of fur on the edge of its ears. Its ears are shorter than those of most other hares.
In summer, it feeds on plants such as
grass
Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns an ...
,
fern
A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...
s, and
leaves
A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...
; in winter, it eats twigs, the bark from trees, and plants and, similar to the
Arctic hare
The Arctic hare (''Lepus arcticus'') is a species of hare highly adapted to living in the Arctic tundra and other icy biomes. The Arctic hare survives with shortened ears and limbs, a small nose, fat that makes up close to 20% of its body, and ...
, has been known to occasionally eat dead animals. It can sometimes be seen feeding in small groups. This animal is mainly active at night and does not
hibernate
Hibernation is a state of minimal activity and metabolic depression undergone by some animal species. Hibernation is a seasonal heterothermy characterized by low body-temperature, slow breathing and heart-rate, and low metabolic rate. It most ...
. The snowshoe hare may have up to four litters in a year, which average three to eight young. Males compete for females, and females may breed with several males.
A major
predator
Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...
of the snowshoe hare is the
Canada lynx
The Canada lynx (''Lynx canadensis''), or Canadian lynx, is a medium-sized North American lynx that ranges across Alaska, Canada, and northern areas of the contiguous United States. It is characterized by its long, dense fur, triangular ears ...
. Historical records of animals caught by
fur hunters over hundreds of years show the lynx and hare numbers rising and falling in a cycle, which has made the hare known to biology students worldwide as a case study of the
relationship between numbers of predators and their prey.
Taxonomy and distribution
Snowshoe hares occur from
Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
to
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
; south in the
Sierra Nevada
The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...
to central California; in the Rocky Mountains to southern
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
and northern New Mexico; and in the
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...
to
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...
.
Populations in its southern range, such as in
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
,
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
,
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
,
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
,
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, and
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
have been
extirpated
Local extinction, also known as extirpation, refers to a species (or other taxon) of plant or animal that ceases to exist in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinct ...
. Locations of subspecies are as follows:
[Hall, E. Raymond. (1981). ''The mammals of North America''. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. New York: John Wiley and Sons. .]
*''Lepus americanus americanus'' (Erxleben) – Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Montana, and North Dakota
*''L. a. cascadensis'' (Nelson) – British Columbia and Washington
*''L. a. columbiensis'' (Rhoads) – British Columbia, Alberta, and Washington
*''L. a. dalli'' (Merriam) – Mackenzie District, British Columbia, Alaska, Yukon
*''L. a. klamathensis'' (Merriam) – Oregon and California
*''L. a. oregonus'' (Orr) – Oregon
*''L. a. pallidus'' (Cowan) – British Columbia
*''L. a. phaeonotus'' (J. A. Allen) – Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota
*''L. a. pineus'' (Dalquest) – British Columbia, Idaho, and Washington
*''L. a. seclusus'' (Baker and Hankins) – Wyoming
*''L. a. struthopus'' (Bangs) – Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Maine
*''L. a. tahoensis'' (Orr) – California, western Nevada
*''L. a. virginianus'' (Harlan) – Ontario, Quebec, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania
*''L. a. washingtonii'' (Baird) – British Columbia, Washington, and Oregon
Description
The snowshoe hare's fur is rusty brown in the spring and summer, and white in the winter. It also always has a gray underbelly, and black on the tips and edges of its ears and tail. It has very large hind feet, and dense fur on their soles. The snowshoe hare's ears are not as long as some other species of hares' ears. In the winter, it turns a bright white to blend in with the snow.
Snowshoe hares range in length from 413 to 518 mm (16.3 to 20.4 in), of which 39 to 52 mm (1.5 to 2.0 in) are tail. The hind foot, long and broad, measures 117 to 147 mm (4.6 to 5.8 in) in length. The ears are 62 to 70 mm (2.4 to 2.8 in) from notch to tip. Snowshoe hares usually weigh between 1.43 and 1.55 kg (3.15 to 3.42 lb). Males are slightly smaller than females, as is typical for leporids. In the summer, the coat is a grizzled rusty or grayish brown, with a blackish middorsal line, buffy flanks and a white belly. The face and legs are cinnamon brown. The ears are brownish with black tips and white or creamy borders. During the winter, the fur is almost entirely white, except for black eyelids and the blackened tips on the ears. The soles of the feet are densely furred, with stiff hairs (forming the snowshoe) on the hind feet.
Habitats
Snowshoe hares are primarily found in
boreal forests
Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces ...
and upper montane forests; within these forests, they favor habitats with a dense shrub layer.
In the
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...
, snowshoe hares occupy diverse habitats, including mature conifers (mostly
Douglas-fir
The Douglas fir (''Pseudotsuga menziesii'') is an evergreen conifer species in the pine family, Pinaceae. It is native to western North America and is also known as Douglas-fir, Douglas spruce, Oregon pine, and Columbian pine. There are three va ...
'Pseudotsuga menziesii''and variants), immature conifers,
alder
Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few sp ...
(''Alnus'' spp.)/salmonberry (''
Rubus spectabilis
''Rubus spectabilis'', the salmonberry, is a species of bramble in the rose family Rosaceae, native to the west coast of North America from west-central Alaska to California, inland as far as Idaho. Like many other species in the genus ''Rubus' ...
''), Sitka spruce (''
Picea sitchensis
''Picea sitchensis'', the Sitka spruce, is a large, coniferous, evergreen tree growing to almost tall, with a trunk diameter at breast height that can exceed 5 m (16 ft). It is by far the largest species of spruce and the fifth-larg ...
'')/salal (''
Gaultheria shallon
''Gaultheria shallon'' is an evergreen shrub in the heather family (biology), family (Ericaceae), native to western North America. In English, it is known as salal, shallon, or (mainly in Britain) gaultheria.
Description
''Gaultheria shallo ...
''), and cedar (''
Thuja
''Thuja'' ( ) is a genus of coniferous tree or shrub in the Cupressaceae (cypress family). There are five species in the genus, two native to North America and three native to eastern Asia. The genus is monophyletic and sister to ''Thujopsis''. M ...
'' spp.) swamps.
In western Oregon, snowshoe hares were present in brush patches of vine maple (''
Acer circinatum
''Acer circinatum'', the vine maple, is a species of maple native to western North America.
Description
It most commonly grows as a large shrub growing to around tall, but it will occasionally form a small to medium-sized tree, exceptionally ...
''),
willow
Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist s ...
s (''Salix'' spp.),
rhododendron
''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nati ...
s (''Rhododendron'' spp.), and other shrubs.
In Utah, snowshoe hares used Gambel oak (''Quercus gambelli'') in the northern portion of the Gambel oak range. In the Southwest, the southernmost populations of snowshoe hares occur in
the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, New Mexico, in subalpine scrub: narrow bands of shrubby and prostrate conifers at and just below timberline that are usually composed of Engelmann spruce (''
Picea engelmannii
''Picea engelmannii'', with the common names Engelmann spruce, white spruce, mountain spruce, and silver spruce, is a species of spruce native to western North America. It is mostly a high-altitude mountain tree but also appears in watered cany ...
''), bristlecone pine (''
Pinus aristata
''Pinus aristata'', the Rocky Mountain bristlecone pine (or the Colorado bristlecone pine), is a long-living species of bristlecone pine tree native to the United States. It appears in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado and northern New Mexico, wit ...
''), limber pine (''
P. flexilis''), and/or common juniper (''
Juniperus communis
''Juniperus communis'', the common juniper, is a species of small tree or shrub in the cypress family Cupressaceae. An evergreen conifer, it has the largest geographical range of any woody plant, with a circumpolar distribution throughout the coo ...
'').
[Brown, David E. (1982). "Subalpine scrub". In: Brown, David E., ed. ''Biotic communities of the American Southwest—United States and Mexico''. Desert Plants. 4(1–4): 81]
In Minnesota, snowshoe hares use
jack pine
Jack pine (''Pinus banksiana'') is an eastern North American pine. Its native range in Canada is east of the Rocky Mountains from the Mackenzie River in the Northwest Territories to Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, and the north-central and ...
(''P. banksiana'') uplands, edges, tamarack (''
Larix laricina'') bogs, black spruce (''
Picea mariana
''Picea mariana'', the black spruce, is a North American species of spruce tree in the pine family. It is widespread across Canada, found in all 10 provinces and all 3 territories. It is the official tree of the province of Newfoundland and Labr ...
'') bogs, and sedge (''
Carex
''Carex'' is a vast genus of more than 2,000 species of grass-like plants in the family Cyperaceae, commonly known as sedges (or seg, in older books). Other members of the family Cyperaceae are also called sedges, however those of genus ''Carex'' ...
'' spp.), alder, and scrub fens. In
New England
New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
, snowshoe hares favor second-growth aspen (''Populus'' spp.)-birch (''Betula'' spp.) near conifers, but other forest types occupied by snowshoe hares include aspens,
paper birch
''Betula papyrifera'' (paper birch, also known as (American) white birch and canoe birch) is a short-lived species of birch native to northern North America. Paper birch is named for the tree's thin white bark, which often peels in paper like ...
(''B. papyrifera''), northern hardwoods, red maple (''A. rubrum''), balsam fir (''
Abies balsamea
''Abies balsamea'' or balsam fir is a North American fir, native to most of eastern and central Canada ( Newfoundland west to central Alberta) and the northeastern United States (Minnesota east to Maine, and south in the Appalachian Mountains to ...
''), red
spruce (''
Picea rubens
''Picea rubens'', commonly known as red spruce, is a species of spruce native to eastern North America, ranging from eastern Quebec and Nova Scotia, west to the Adirondack Mountains and south through New England along the Appalachians to western ...
'')-balsam fir, eastern hemlock (''
Tsuga canadensis
''Tsuga canadensis'', also known as eastern hemlock, eastern hemlock-spruce, or Canadian hemlock, and in the French-speaking regions of Canada as ''pruche du Canada'', is a coniferous tree native to eastern North America. It is the state tree o ...
''), northern red oak (''
Quercus rubra''), oak (''Quercus'' spp.)-pine (''Pinus'' spp.),
eastern white pine (''P. strobus'')-northern red oak-red maple, and eastern white pine. Snowshoe hares also use shrub swamps dominated by buttonbush (''
Cephalanthus occidentalis
''Cephalanthus occidentalis'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Rubiaceae that is native to eastern and southern North America. Common names include buttonbush, common buttonbush, button-willow, buck brush, and honey-bells.
Descripti ...
''), alders, and silky dogwood (''Cornus ammomum'').
[DeGraaf, Richard M.; Yamasaki, Mariko; Leak, William B.; Lanier, John W. (1992). New England wildlife: management of forested habitats. Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-144. Radnor, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station] Further details on plant communities used by snowshoe hares in different regions are in Bittner and Rongstad.
Reproduction and Leverets
![Lepus americanus 5646](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Lepus_americanus_5646.JPG)
Like all
leporids, snowshoe hares are
crepuscular
In zoology, a crepuscular animal is one that is active primarily during the twilight period, being matutinal, vespertine, or both. This is distinguished from diurnal and nocturnal behavior, where an animal is active during the hours of daylig ...
and
nocturnal
Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite.
Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...
. They are shy and secretive and spend most of the day in shallow depressions, called forms, scraped out under clumps of ferns, brush thickets, and downed piles of timber. They occasionally use the large burrows of mountain beavers (''Aplodontia rufa'') as forms. Diurnal activity level increases during the breeding season. Juveniles are usually more active and less cautious than adults.
Snowshoe hares are active year-round. The breeding season for hares is stimulated by new vegetation and varies with latitude, location, and yearly events (such as weather conditions and phase of snowshoe hare population cycle).
Breeding generally begins in late December to January and lasts until July or August .
In northwestern Oregon, male peak breeding activity (as determined by testes weight) occurs in May and is at the minimum in November. In Ontario, the peak is in May and in Newfoundland, the peak is in June. Female estrus begins in March in Newfoundland, Alberta, and Maine, and in early April in Michigan and Colorado. First litters of the year are born from mid-April to May.
![Snowshoe Hare (6187109754)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/Snowshoe_Hare_%286187109754%29.jpg)
The gestation period is 35 to 40 days; most studies report 37 days as the average length of gestation. Litters average three to five leverets depending on latitude, elevation, and phase of population cycle, ranging from one to seven.
Deep snow-pack increases the amount of upper-branch browse available to snowshoe hares in winter, and therefore has a positive relationship with the nutritional status of breeding adults. Litters are usually smaller
in the southern sections of their range since there is less snow. Newborns are fully furred, open-eyed, and mobile. They leave the natal form within a short time after birth, often within 24 hours. After leaving the birthplace, siblings stay near each other during the day, gathering once each evening to nurse.
Weaning occurs at 25 to 28 days except for the last litter of the season, which may nurse for two months or longer.
Female snowshoe hares can become pregnant anytime after the 35th day of gestation. The second litter can therefore be conceived before the first litter is born (snowshoe hares have twin uteri).
Pregnancy rates ranged from 78 to 100% for females during the period of first litter production, 82 to 100% for second litters, and for the periods of third and fourth litters pregnancy rates vary with population cycle. In Newfoundland, the average number of litters per female per year ranged from 2.9 to 3.5, and in Alberta the range was from 2.7 to 3.3.
The number of litters per year varies with phase of population cycle (see below). In Alberta the average number of litters per year was almost 3 just after a population peak and 4 just after the population low. Females normally first breed as 1-year-olds. Juvenile breeding is rare and has only been observed in females from the first litter of the year and only in years immediately following a low point in the population cycle.
In Yukon, 30-day survival of radio-tagged leverets was 46%, 15%, and 43% for the first, second, and third litters of the year, respectively. There were no differences in mortality in plots with food added. The main proximate cause of mortality was predation by small mammals, including red squirrels (''Tamiasciurus hudsonicus'') and Arctic ground squirrels (''Spermophilus parryii''). Littermates tended to live or die together more often than by chance. Individual survival was negatively related to litter size and positively related to body size at birth. Litter size is negatively correlated with body size at birth.
Population cycles
![Milliers fourrures vendues en environ 90 ans odum 1953 en](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5b/Milliers_fourrures_vendues_en_environ_90_ans_odum_1953_en.jpg)
Northern populations of snowshoe hares undergo cycles that range from seven to 17 years between population peaks. The average time between peaks is approximately 10 years. The period of abundance usually lasts for two to five years, followed by a population decline to lower numbers or local scarcity. Areas of great abundance tend to be scattered.
Populations do not peak simultaneously in all areas, although a great deal of synchronicity occurs in northern latitudes.
From 1931 to 1948, the cycle was synchronized within one or two years over most of Canada and Alaska, despite differences in predators and food supplies.
In central Alberta, low snowshoe hare density occurred in 1965, with 42 to 74 snowshoe hares per 100 acres (40 ha). The population peak occurred in November 1970 with 2,830 to 5,660 snowshoe hares per 100 acres (40 ha). In the southern parts of its range, snowshoe hare populations do not fluctuate radically.
Exclosure experiments in Alberta indicated browsing by snowshoe hares during population peaks has the greatest impact on palatable species, thus further reducing the amount of available foods. In this study, insufficient nutritious young browse was available to sustain the number of snowshoe hares present in the peak years (1971 and 1972) in winter.
The hare's fluctuating numbers are modelled by the
Lotka–Volterra equations
The Lotka–Volterra equations, also known as the predator–prey equations, are a pair of first-order nonlinear differential equations, frequently used to describe the dynamics of biological systems in which two species interact, one as a pred ...
.
Preferred habitat
![Schneehase 2004-11-14](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Schneehase_2004-11-14.jpg)
Major variables in habitat quality include average visual obstruction and browse biomass. Snowshoe hares prefer young forests with abundant understories. The presence of cover is the primary determinant of habitat quality, and is more significant than food availability or species composition.
Species composition does, however, influence population density; dense softwood understories support greater snowshoe hare density than hardwoods because of cover quality. In Maine, female snowshoe hares were observed to be more common on sites with less cover but more nutritious forage; males tended to be found on sites with heavier cover.
Winter browse availability depends on height of understory brush and winter snow depth; saplings with narrow stem diameters are required for winter browse in heavy snow.
In northern regions, snowshoe hares occupy conifer and mixed forests in all stages of succession, but early successional forests foster peak abundance. Deciduous forests are usually occupied only in early stages of succession. In New England, snowshoe hares preferred second-growth deciduous, coniferous, and mixed woods with dense brushy understories; they appear to prefer shrubby old-field areas, early- to mid-successional burns, shrub-swamps, bogs, and upper montane
krumholz
''Krummholz'' (german: krumm, "crooked, bent, twisted" and ''Holz'', "wood") — also called ''knieholz'' ("knee timber") — is a type of stunted, deformed vegetation encountered in the subarctic and subalpine tree line landscapes, shaped b ...
vegetation.
In Maine, snowshoe hares were more active in clearcut areas than in partially cut or uncut areas. Sapling densities were highest on 12- to 15-year-old plots; these plots were used more than younger stands. In northern Utah, they occupied all the later stages of succession on quaking aspen and spruce-fir, but were not observed in meadows. In Alberta, snowshoe hares use upland shrub-sapling stages of regenerating aspens (either postfire or postharvest). In British Columbia overstocked juvenile lodgepole pine (''Pinus contorta'') stands formed optimal snowshoe hare habitat.
In western Washington, most unburned, burned, or scarified clearcuts will normally be fully occupied by snowshoe hares within four to five years, as vegetation becomes dense.
In older stands (more than 25 years), stem density begins to decline and cover for snowshoe hares decreases.
However, in north-central Washington, they may not
colonize clearcuts until six or seven years, and it may take 20 to 25 years for their density to reach maximum. Winter snowshoe hare pellet counts were highest in 20-year-old lodgepole pine stands, lower in older lodgepole stands, and lowest in spruce-dominated stands.
In western Oregon, snowshoe hares were abundant only in early successional stages, including stable brushfields.
[Allen, Hollis Howard. (1969). The inter-relationship of salmonberry and Douglas-fir in cutover areas. Corvallis, OR: Oregon State University] In west-central Oregon, an old-growth Douglas-fir forest was clearcut and monitored through 10 years of succession. A few snowshoe hares were noted in adjacent virgin forest plots; they represented widely scattered, sparse populations. One snowshoe hare was observed on the disturbed plot 2.5 years after it had been clearcut and burned; at this stage, ground cover was similar to that of the uncut forest. By 9 years after disturbance, snowshoe hare density had increased markedly.
In western Washington, snowshoe hares routinely used steep slopes where cover was adequate; most studies, however, suggest they tend to prefer gentle slopes.
[Campbell, Dan L. (1982). "Influence of site preparation on animal use and animal damage to tree seedlings". In: Baumgartner, David M., compiler. ''Site preparation and fuels management on steep terrain'': Proceedings of a symposium; 1982 February 15–17; Spokane, WA. Pullman, WA: Washington State University, Cooperative Extension: 93–101] Moonlight increases snowshoe hare vulnerability to predation, particularly in winter. They tend to avoid open areas during bright phases of the moon and during bright periods of a single night. Their activity usually shifts from coniferous understories in winter to hardwood understories in summer.
Vegetative structure plays an important role in the size of snowshoe hare home ranges. Snowshoe hares wander up to 5 miles (8 km) when food is scarce.
[Banfield, A. W. F. (1974). ''The mammals of Canada''. Toronto: University of Toronto Press] In Montana home ranges are smaller in brushy woods than in open woods. In Colorado and Utah, the average home range of both sexes was 20 acres (8.1 ha). On the
Island of Montreal
The Island of Montreal (french: Île de Montréal) is a large island in southwestern Quebec, Canada, that is the site of a number of municipalities including most of the city of Montreal and is the most populous island in Canada. It is the main ...
in Quebec, the average daily range for both sexes was 4 acres (1.6 ha) in old-field mixed woods. In Montana, the home range averaged 25 acres (10 ha) for males and 19 acres (7.6 ha) for females. In Oregon the average snowshoe hare home range was 14.6 acres (5.9 ha).
Cover requirements
![Lepus_americanus_(31255566782)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Lepus_americanus_%2831255566782%29.jpg)
Snowshoe hares require dense, brushy, usually coniferous cover; thermal and escape cover are especially important for young hares.
Low brush provides hiding, escape, and thermal cover. Heavy cover 10 feet (3 m) above ground provides protection from avian predators, and heavy cover 3.3 feet (1 m) tall provides cover from terrestrial predators. Overwinter survival increases with increased cover.
A wide variety of habitat types are used if cover is available. Base visibility in good snowshoe hare habitat ranges from 2% at 16.5 feet (5 m) distance to 0% at 66 feet (20 m). Travel cover is slightly more open, ranging from 14.7% visibility at 16.5 feet (5 m) to 2.6% at 66 feet (20 m). Areas with horizontal vegetation density of 40 to 100% at 50 feet (15 m) are adequate snowshoe hare habitat in Utah.
Food habits
Snowshoe hares eat a variety of plant materials. Forage type varies with season. Succulent green vegetation is consumed when available from spring to fall; after the first frost, buds, twigs, evergreen needles, and bark form the bulk of snowshoe hare diets until spring greenup.
[Bittner, Steven L.; Rongstad, Orrin J. (1982). "Snowshoe hare and allies". In: Chapman, J. A.; Feldhamer, C. A., eds. ''Wild mammals of North America: biology, management and economies''. Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 146–163. .] Snowshoe hares typically feed at night and follow well-worn forest paths to feed on various plants and trees.
Winter
![Brooks Range (10) snowshoe hare](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/Brooks_Range_%2810%29_snowshoe_hare.jpg)
Snowshoe hares prefer branches, twigs, and small stems up to 0.25 inch (6.3 mm) diameter; larger stems are sometimes used in winter.
In Yukon, they normally eat fast-growing birches and willows, and avoid spruce. At high densities, however, the apical shoots of small spruce are eaten.
The snowshoe hare winter diet is dominated by bog birch (''
Betula glandulosa''), which is preferred but not always available. Greyleaf willow (''
Salix glauca
''Salix glauca'' is a species of flowering plant in the willow family known by the common names gray willow, grayleaf willow, white willow, and glaucous willow. It is native to North America, where it occurs throughout much of Alaska, northern ...
'') is eaten most often when bog birch is not available. Buffaloberry (''
Shepherdia canadensis
''Shepherdia canadensis'', commonly called Canada buffaloberry, russet buffaloberry, soopolallie, soapberry, or foamberry (Ktunaxa: ',) is one of a small number of shrubs of the genus '' Shepherdia'' that bears edible berries.
Description
The pl ...
'') is the fourth most common diet item. White spruce (''
Picea glauca
''Picea glauca'', the white spruce, is a species of spruce native to the northern temperate and boreal forests in North America. ''Picea glauca'' is native from central Alaska all through the east, across southern/central Canada to the Avalon Pe ...
'') is eaten, but not preferred. In Alaska, spruce, willows, and alders comprise 75% of snowshoe hare diets; spruce needles make up nearly 40% of the diet.
In northwestern Oregon, winter foods include needles and tender bark of Sitka spruce, Douglas-fir, and western hemlock (''
Tsuga heterophylla
''Tsuga heterophylla'', the western hemlock or western hemlock-spruce, is a species of hemlock native to the west coast of North America, with its northwestern limit on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, and its southeastern limit in northern Sonom ...
''); leaves and green twigs of salal; buds, twigs, and bark of willows; and green herbs.
In north-central Washington, willows and birches are not plentiful; snowshoe hares browse the tips of lodgepole pine seedlings. In Utah, winter foods include Douglas-fir, willows, snowberry (''
Symphoricarpos'' spp.), maples, and serviceberry (''
Amelanchier'' spp.). In Minnesota, aspens, willows, hazelnut (''
Corylus
The hazel (''Corylus'') is a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K. (1999). ...
'' spp.), ferns (''
Pteridophyta
A pteridophyte is a vascular plant (with xylem and phloem) that disperses spores. Because pteridophytes produce neither flowers nor seeds, they are sometimes referred to as " cryptogams", meaning that their means of reproduction is hidden. Ferns ...
'' spp.), birches, alders, sumacs (''Rhus'' spp.), and strawberries (''Fragaria'' spp.) are winter foods. Winter foods in New York include eastern white pine, red pine (''
Pinus resinosa
''Pinus resinosa'', known as red pine (also Norway pine in Minnesota), is a pine native to North America.
Description
Red pine is a coniferous evergreen tree characterized by tall, straight growth. It usually ranges from in height and in trun ...
''), white spruce, paper birch, and aspens.
In Ontario, sugar maple (''
Acer saccharum
''Acer saccharum'', the sugar maple, is a species of flowering plant in the soapberry and lychee family Sapindaceae. It is native to the hardwood forests of eastern Canada and eastern United States. Sugar maple is best known for being the prima ...
''),
striped maple (''A. pensylvanicum''), red maple, other deciduous species, northern white-cedar (''T. occidentalis''), balsam fir, beaked hazelnut (''C. cornuta''), and buffaloberry were heavily barked.
In New Brunswick, snowshoe hares consumed northern white-cedar, spruces, American beech (''Fagus grandifolia''), balsam fir, mountain maple (''A. spicatum''), and many other species of browse. In Newfoundland, paper birch is preferred.
Further details on regional food preferences are summarized in ''Snowshoe hare and allies'':
Recent studies show that Snowshoe hares also eat meat including flesh from their own species.
Spring, summer and autumn
![Snowshoe hare eating grass](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Snowshoe_hare_eating_grass.jpg)
In Alaska, snowshoe hares consume new leaves of blueberries (''
Vaccinium
''Vaccinium'' is a common and widespread genus of shrubs or dwarf shrubs in the heath family (Ericaceae). The fruits of many species are eaten by humans and some are of commercial importance, including the cranberry, blueberry, bilberry (whort ...
'' spp.), new shoots of field horsetails (''
Equisetum arvense
''Equisetum arvense'', the field horsetail or common horsetail, is an herbaceous perennial plant in the Equisetidae (horsetails) sub-class, native throughout the arctic and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It has separate sterile ...
''), and fireweed (''
Epilobium angustifolium
''Chamaenerion angustifolium'' is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant in the willowherb family Onagraceae. It is known in North America as fireweed, in some parts of Canada as great willowherb, in Britain and Ireland as rosebay willowherb. I ...
'') in spring.
Grasses are not a major item due to low availability associated with sites that have adequate cover. In summer, leaves of willows, black spruce, birches, and bog Labrador tea (''
Ledum groenlandicum'') are also consumed. Black spruce is the most heavily used and the most common species in the area. Pen trials suggest black spruce is not actually preferred. Roses (''
Rosa
Rosa or De Rosa may refer to:
People
*Rosa (given name)
* Rosa (surname)
*Santa Rosa (female given name from Latin-a latinized variant of Rose)
Places
*223 Rosa, an asteroid
*Rosa, Alabama, a town, United States
* Rosa, Germany, in Thuringia, G ...
'' spp.) were preferred, but a minor dietary item, as they were not common in the study area.
In northwest Oregon, summer foods include grasses, clovers (''
Trifolium
Clover or trefoil are common names for plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (from Latin ''tres'' 'three' + ''folium'' 'leaf'), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume or pea family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The genus h ...
'' spp.), other
forbs, and some woody plants, including Sitka spruce, Douglas-fir, and young leaves and twigs of salal.
In Minnesota, aspens, willows, grasses, birches, alders, sumacs, and strawberries are consumed when green.
[Martin, Alexander C.; Zim, Herbert S.; Nelson, Arnold L. (1951). ''American wildlife and plants''. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company] In Ontario, summer diets consist of clovers, grasses, and forbs.
Predators
![Fox_(11983225834)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Fox_%2811983225834%29.jpg)
The snowshoe hare is a major prey item for a number of predators. Its foremost predator is the
Canada lynx
The Canada lynx (''Lynx canadensis''), or Canadian lynx, is a medium-sized North American lynx that ranges across Alaska, Canada, and northern areas of the contiguous United States. It is characterized by its long, dense fur, triangular ears ...
(''Lynx canadensis''), but other predators include
bobcat
The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUC ...
s (''L. rufus''),
fishers
Fisher is an archaic term for a fisherman, revived as gender-neutral.
Fisher, Fishers or The Fisher may also refer to:
Places
Australia
*Division of Fisher, an electoral district in the Australian House of Representatives, in Queensland
*Elect ...
(''Pekania pennanti''),
American martens (''Martes americana''),
Pacific marten
The Pacific marten (''Martes caurina'') is a species of North American mammal, a member of the family Mustelidae. It is found throughout western North America.
Taxonomy
The species was formerly considered conspecific with the American marten ...
s, (''M. caurina''),
long-tailed weasel
The long-tailed weasel (''Neogale frenata''), also known as the bridled weasel, masked ermine, or big stoat, is a species of mustelid distributed from southern Canada throughout all the United States and Mexico, southward through all of Central A ...
s (''Neogale frenata''),
minks (''N. vison''), foxes (''Vulpes'' and ''Urocyon'' spp.),
coyote
The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecologica ...
(''Canis latrans''),
domestic dogs
The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...
(''C. familiaris''),
domestic cats (''Felis catus''),
wolves
The wolf (''Canis lupus''; plural, : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been reco ...
(''Canis lupus''),
cougar
The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mamm ...
s (''Puma concolor''),
great horned owl
The great horned owl (''Bubo virginianus''), also known as the tiger owl (originally derived from early naturalists' description as the "winged tiger" or "tiger of the air"), or the hoot owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an extrem ...
s (''Bubo virginianus''),
barred owl
The barred owl (''Strix varia''), also known as the northern barred owl, striped owl or, more informally, hoot owl, is a North American large species of owl. A member of the true owl family, Strigidae, they belong to the genus '' Strix'', whic ...
s (''Strix varia''),
spotted owl
The spotted owl (''Strix occidentalis'') is a species of true owl. It is a resident species of old-growth forests in western North America, where it nests in tree hollows, old bird of prey nests, or rock crevices. Nests can be between high a ...
s (''S. occidentalis''), other owls,
red-tailed hawk
The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members with ...
s (''Buteo jamaicensis''),
northern goshawk
The northern goshawk (; ''Accipiter gentilis'') is a species of medium-large bird of prey, raptor in the Family (biology), family Accipitridae, a family which also includes other extant diurnal raptors, such as eagles, buzzards and harrier (bird) ...
s (''Accipiter gentilis''), other hawks (''Buteonidae''),
golden eagle
The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known bird of p ...
s (''Aquila chryseatos''), as well as
corvid
Corvidae is a Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan family (biology), family of oscine passerine birds that contains the crows, ravens, rook (bird), rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, treepies, choughs, and nutcracker (bird), nutcrackers. In coll ...
s.
[Maser, Chris; Mate, Bruce R.; Franklin, Jerry F.; Dyrness, C. T. (1981). Natural history of Oregon Coast mammals. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-133. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station][Giusti, Gregory A.; Schmidt, Robert H.; Timm, Robert M. et al. (1992). "The lagomorphs: rabbits, hares, and pika". In: ''Silvicultural approaches to animal damage management in Pacific Northwest forests''. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-287. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. pp. 289–307.] Other predators include
black bears (''Ursus americanus'').
In Glacier National Park snowshoe hares are a prey item of
Rocky Mountain wolves (''Canis lupus irremotus'').
Vulnerability to climate change
The habitat for some snowshoe hares has changed dramatically, leaving some habitats without snow for longer periods than previously. Some hares have adapted and stay brown all winter. Others, however, continue to turn white in winter. These hares are at an increased risk of being hunted and killed because they are no longer camouflaged. Many people in the scientific community believe that snowshoe hare populations are at risk of crashing unless interbreeding speeds up the process of evolution to year-round brown. Other species who rely on the hare as part of their diet are also at risk.
References
External links
Environmental Education for Kids!: Critter Cornerat ''Animal Diversity Web''
{{Authority control
Lepus
Arctic land animals
Mammals of the United States
Mammals of Canada
Fauna of Alaska
Fauna of the Sierra Nevada (United States)
Fauna of the Western United States
Fauna of the Great Lakes region (North America)
Mammals described in 1777
Taxa named by Johann Christian Polycarp Erxleben