Snowshoe hares
Images copyright by Mark A. Chappell
Snowshoe hares are famous for their namesake huge hind feet (see upper right) and for changing from a brown summer pelage -- as here -- into a white winter coat. They are a major part of the food chain in boreal forests, especially for animals like the Canada lynx. These hares, and their predators, show dramatic population cycles that can range from several years to a decade or more in different places. I took these pictures in Denali National Park, Alaska.
