snowshoe_hare

media type="youtube" key="BQQ2kSfyleI&hl=en&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&border=1" height="373" width="425" media type="youtube" key="c20YgNX8Sus&hl=en&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&border=1" height="373" width="425" Snowshoe Hare Lupus Americanus

CHARACTERISTICS: The snowshoe hare is 413-518 m.m. long (16.26-20.39 inches)from the tail to his nose. Its ears are usually 62-70 m.m. long. The weight of a snowshoe is 1.43-1.55 kg(3.15-3.41 pounds). The ears of a hare are larger than the ears of a rabbit. The life span is normally five years. The snowshoe hare's fur is a thick white only in winter to fool predators(lyx, bobcats, wolves, minks, foxes, and others). In the spring the hare begins to molt its white fur and gets thin brown fur. They have acute hearing. When they hear predators they stay completely still. The back legs are huge so they can walk, hop, or run through snow without sinking(hence the name snowshoe). RANGE: The snowshoe hare live in the north, mostly Canada and northwestern United States DIET: green grass, forbs, bluegrass, brome, vetches, asters, jewelweed, wild strawberry, pussy-toes, dandelions, clovers, daises, and horsetail. Sometimes in winter snowshoe hare eats the bark off twigs. REPRODUCTION: In early March-August the male chases the female in a zig-zag motion through the woods. The mother gives birth to one-seven young covered in downy fluff. Their eyes are open and weigh two and a half pounds. Soon after they're born they hop and after one week the are fully active. At ten days of age the young chew on a bit of grass but they're not weaned until they're one month old. At five months the young are adult size.

Sources:http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Lepus_americanus.html http://www.timberwolfinformation.org/kidsonly/wolfweb/hare.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowshoe_Hare Time Life Student Library:Mammals, Alexandria, Viginia, Time-Life Books, 1997