By: Patrick Troyer, Paulding SWCD
Have you been keeping up with our Ohio Wildlife Series? Do you want to learn about more? Then do we have a treat for you with another installment of the wildlife that finds a home right her in our great state of Ohio. The feature animal for this week is likely one that easily gets confused with other species, as they look very similar to one another. For this week, we will look at a member of the hare species known as the snowshoe hare. How does one identify this animal and not confuse it with a rabbit? Where does it live and what does it eat? Get your answer to these questions and more as we learn about the snowshoe hare.
When talking about hares, it is important to first point out how they can be differentiated from rabbits as these two species can easily be confused with one another. It is important to first point out that both rabbits and hares are related to one another with some noticeable differences between the two. According to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), hares are generally larger in size compared to rabbits and will have increased length to their ears along with longer legs. Another difference arises when comparing the young of both the rabbit and the hare. Newborn hares will have a full coat of fur and open eyes at birth while a newborn rabbit will be born blind and without hair. ODNR writes that it takes about one week for the eyes of the rabbit to open and another week on top of that before they grow fur and hop around.
The snowshoe hare is common throughout North America but have had a sparse presence in Ohio. According to ODNR, this species was once common to far northeastern Ohio but that their populations experienced sharp declines at the turn of the 20th century as forestland was cleared on a large scale during this time. If you are out during the day, you are not very likely to find a snowshoe hare, as they are a nocturnal animal meaning that they are active during the nighttime hours. Dawn or dusk seem to be the best times for this animal to be seen.
What does the snowshoe hare look like? This species is noted as having some unique adaptations that help to provide a source of protection against predators, which can vary with the seasons. According to the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), snowshoe hares are white during the winter months to blend in with the snow while they will change to a red-brown during the summer months to blend in with the soil and rocks. The only part of the hare’s body that remains the same color is their black ears. As you might imagine with a hare, the hind feet of this animal are larger than their front feet that can help them reach speeds upwards of 30 miles per hour.
Are you curious how it got the name snowshoe hare? According to ODNR, the hind feet will reach a size around seven inches and have webbing between the toes just like snowshoes which allows them to easily run and jump across the snow covered ground. Such an adaptation allows them to protect themselves from predators such as foxes with the ability to easily get away. The snowshoe hare is a herbivorous species, meaning they will only eat plants such as grass, flowers, fruits, and buds.
Breeding season for the snowshoe hare takes place at two times during the year, in the spring and in the summer. They increase in population rather quickly with a female able to have up to four litters per year consisting of around two to four young on average. The young will only come together during feeding times; otherwise, they will go their separate ways during other times of the day. ODNR writes that the young hares will be cared for by the mother for a span of about four weeks at which point they are weaned and ready to live on their own. Typical life spans for the snowshoe hare are only about a year, although the NWF says that many do not reach this age but that some have been noted as living up to five years in the wild.
While not exactly like the hare in the famous story “Tortoise and the Hare”, the snowshoe hare is truly an amazing animal to say the least. One important note to make is the fact that this animal is a protected species within the state of Ohio and is listed by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources as a “species of concern”. Stay tuned for further installments of our Ohio Wildlife Series to learn about more animals that call our state home!
