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Hunting Snowshoe Hare Page
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Snowshoe Hare
Lepus americanus
Habitat: The species is most abundant in willow thickets where forbs and shrubs are dense. Forests subjected to forest fires, windfall, or logging provide excellent habitat, once sufficient succession has occurred. In Colorado the species is restricted to the mountains, most commonly in or near dense stands of montane or subalpine forest and alpine tundra near treeline.
Diet: The diet consists of foliage, twigs, and bark of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs, as well as a variety of grasses and forbs when available (Hansen and Flinders 1969). Green succulents, including clovers, sedges, and grasses, are important in late spring and summer. During winter the diet consists mostly of needles, browse, and bark of coniferous trees, especially Douglas-fir, subalpine fir, and spruce. Aspen, willow, birch, and even oakbrush are also acceptable winter foods.
Description: The snowshoe hare, also termed snowshoe rabbit (a misnomer, as it is not a rabbit), or varying hare, is medium sized with disproportionately large hindfeet and only moderately large ears. The summer pelage is rusty brownish to gray-brown above and white below. The tips of the ears are blackish, and frequently the animal shows striking, whitish gray stockings. During the fall the animals molt to a white winter pelage with only the tips of the ears remaining black. Measurements are: total length 365-525 mm; length of tail 25-55; length of hindfoot 110-150 mm; length of ear 60-80 mm; weight 1-1.5 kg.
Range in Colorado: Snowshoe hares are common in coniferous forests over most of mountainous Colorado. Elevational distribution ranges from 2,438 to 3,505 m (8,000-11,500 ft). The lowest elevational record is 1,980 m (6,500 ft) from Gunnison County (Warren 1942) and the westernmost specimen is from Anvil Points, near Rifle, Garfield County (Finley et al. 1976).
Status: CDOW Small Game Mammal
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