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Arctic hare - LEPUS TIMIDUS
Possibly Endangered
Class: Animals with Milk Glands (Mammalia)
The Name "Hare": "Hare" comes from Old English "hara," a word for the animal.
Location: Northernmost Europe, Asia, and North America.
Habitat: Terrestrial. Arctic tundra and mountainous environments, up to timber line.
Description: Like the snowshoe hare, the Arctic hare has a coat that varies with the season: brown with gray and sometimes reddish shades in the summer, white in the winter (although the northernmost hares remain white year-round.) Its small round tail is permanently whitish. This hare is large, over two feet in length counting the tail, and over twelve pounds.
Behavior: The Arctic hare sometimes lives in small groups, but is more commonly found alone. It feeds on the sparse vegetation of the tundra, and on aromatic herbs. In winter it nibbles the bark of young trees.
Reproduction: The female gives birth 2 or 3 times a year to two to five leverets (baby hares). The young do not reach sexual maturity until they are a year old.
Note: The population numbers of this hare fluctuate widely, but the species is nevertheless becoming increasingly rare. The main predator is the arctic fox.
Go to the Rabbits Page to get a general discussion of this order of animals.
Go to the Rabbits Index to study the other rabbits and hares included in America Zoo.
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