Arctic Hare Facts And Adaptations - Lepus Arcticus - Cool Antarctica

arctic hare facts Basics

Average Weight: 2.5 to 5.5kg (6-12 lbs), up to 7kg (15.5lb), females tend to be larger than males. Average Length: 48 to 68 cm long (19-28 inches), a short tail of 3-8cm (1-3 inches) Breeding Season: April to mid-September, usually one or two litters per year with 5 to 6 leverets (baby hares) at a time. A depression in the ground or under rocks for shelter is used as a nest, usually lined with moss, fur and grass. Once born the young are left by the female who only returns to feed them with milk every 18 hours or so, they are fully weaned at 8-9 weeks. The young from one year are ready to breed the following year. Arctic hares tend to disperse during the breeding season, individuals pair up and adopt a mating territory, males may have more than one partner. They have a rapid ability to reproduce and build up numbers.Estimated world population: - Unknown, widespread species with what are thought to be healthy populations though little monitoring is taking place. Populations undergo cyclic fluctuations. Diet and Feeding: Mainly herbivorous though can act as an opportunist predator or scavenger, they eat a wide range of foods, mosses, lichens, buds, berries, leaves, roots, woody plants, seaweed and bark depending on the season and availability. During the winter, they will dig through snow to find buried food. They have been reported to scavenge on fish and other meat, they eat snow to get water. Conservation status: Least Concern. Habitat and Distribution: The Arctic Hare lives mainly above the northern tree line in the Arctic tundra, though some move below the tree line in winter, they live at altitudes up to 900m. They are not found on sea ice being herbivores dependent on land plants for food. Predators: Arctic wolf, arctic fox, red fox, grey wolf, lynx, snowy owl, gyrfalcon, ermine and Canadian lynx. The smaller predators such as ermine, snowy owl and arctic fox will usually prey on younger hares. The arctic hare was historically important to Native Americans who hunted them for their fur to make clothing and for food. Such hunting still goes on, though affects only a small amount of the population (around 5%) and probably has no impact on the overall numbers.