The snowshoe hare population is ready to set record highs in the Yukon
The snowshoe hare is an underrated, yet quintessential species of the boreal forest.
While five species of rabbits and hares (leporids) can be found across Canada, the Yukon is home only to the snowshoe hare. We often think of wildlife as moose, bear or caribou, but it’s the little things, like hares, that make a big difference in our ecosystem.
Seeing a “bunny” can be rare, as they are shy and secretive, moving quietly through the forest, browsing on grasses and twigs. In the summer, their coats are a dirty brown, camouflaging perfectly with the woody debris of the forest floor. But in the winter, their coats turn pure white so they can blend in with the snow.
This camouflage adaptation is essential because everything eats snowshoe hare. From foxes and weasels to eagles and hawks, the snowshoe hare is on everyone’s menu. They are a “keystone species” of the boreal forest food web: if something happens to them, the entire system is affected.
The most-famous predator of hares is the Canada lynx. Hares can make up 96 percent of a lynx’s diet. Both species are specifically adapted for living on the snow. As the name implies, snowshoe hares have huge feet and can run on top of deep snow, escaping predators that are so heavy that they sink in.
The Canada lynx, however, also has enormous feet. Thick fur between the toes also acts like snowshoes, allowing the lynx to successfully hunt hares in deep snow.
You may have noticed more snowshoe hares around lately, especially in Kluane. Hares have a 10-year population cycle, embedded within a 50- to 70-year super-cycle, and the Yukon is about to hit the peak.
If you’ve suddenly noticed more bunnies than usual, you’re not seeing things. There really are more around! The population has been steadily climbing, and long-term boreal forest monitoring from Kluane shows that we’re due to climb past the normal 10-year population cycle to a super-peak. This peak will likely move across the Yukon from west to east. Folks in Kluane have already noticed intense hare numbers, and soon such observations might be made in the Southern Lakes, then out to Liard.
What does this mean?
It’s a bad time to be a shrub! With so many hares running around, they’re going to eat a lot of the forage, and small shrubs and ground-level vegetation will be picked clean. But it’s also a great time to be in the “other types” of prey-species category, because of the abundance of hares. Other animals such as squirrels, voles and mice aren’t being predated as much, and their populations will rise as well. And so there’s even more food for predators like coyotes, foxes, pine martens, wolverines and wolves. With plenty to eat, their young are more likely to survive, so their populations will rise as well.
But what goes up must come down. Eventually, predators will outnumber the prey. Hares will consume much of the sheltered browse, forcing them to take more risks to find food. They’ll be easily picked off by the high number of predators (remember, everything eats hares). Hare numbers will crash, and the lynx, coyote and marten will not be able to find enough food. They will die off as well.
As the boreal forest moves through this natural boom-bust cycle, you can time your wildlife-viewing efforts well. The next few years will be a great time to do some bunny viewing. Head out for a hike, even in the winter, and see if you can spot these important lagomorphs. You’ll also have a good chance of seeing some of the charismatic carnivores as they feast on the bounty of the forest. Watch for lynx, marten, wolverine, hawks and foxes, as they take advantage of the buffet.
But don’t put it off. The high numbers of these animals will be “hare today” but gone tomorrow.
(Full credit for these puns goes to senior wildlife biologist, Tom Jung.)
Rabbits Versus Hares
These terms are often used interchangeably, but rabbits and hares are not the same thing. Rabbits are generally smaller, with shorter ears, and are born altricial (hairless and helpless), with their eyes closed.
Hares are larger and are born precocial (fully developed), with fur and with eyes open. Bunnies are reserved for cartoons and mischievous chocolate-egg hiders.
