Snowshoe Hare Research Paper

In which mosses, lichens, and other shrubs thrive on hills and valleys in the tundra (National Geographic). Permafrost, which acts a layer of snow on the land, remains frozen year round, with the exception of summer, when the top layers thaw, while the bottom layers remain frozen (National Geographic). These soil conditions greatly hinder soil development. Despite the short growing season, plants in the tundra have learned to adapt through various ways such as, a) grouping together to resist the strong winds of the tundra, b) learning to photosynthesize in low temperatures and light intensities, while using the minimum amounts of energy and c) reproducing by less energy dependent ways (Kids Do Ecology). Like plants, animals who call the tundra home, such as caribou, arctic hares, squirrels, wolves, and polar bears, ravens etc. have also learned to adapt to life in the tundra. They have developed the ability to breed and raise their young during the summer, accumulate fat that serves as insulation, hibernate when food sources are limited, and/or migrate to other areas during the winter months (University of California Museum of Paleontology). In spite of the tundra’s frigid climate, the frozen desert still manages to have a thriving food chain from beginning to end, with producers, herbivores, omnivores and

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) is a large piece of land in Alaska. It

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) is located in the northeastern part of Alaska and has been the topic of many recent political and environmental debates. Many of these

Global temperature increases and associated increases in precipitation in northern Nova Scotia will likely have detrimental impacts on already threatened species. The Canadian Lynx population is decreasing quickly due to human hunting for its fur and its habitats being destroyed forcing them to continuously migrate north. They have evolved to thrive in snow cover and cold temperatures with their large snowshoe-like paws and thick fur, which gives them an advantage to capture prey compared to other predators such as coyotes or bobcats ("Threats To Lynx" 2012, Hoving et al. 2003). The lynx is a specialist predator focusing on the snowshoe hare as its primary source of food. The hare and the lynx have a very interconnected population cycle that lasts roughly 10 years (Yan et al. 2013). Hares experience large fluctuations in their population cycle based on a number of factors that influence the ecosystem. When hare populations are in decline, in periods where nature must regenerate, the lynx population is also shown to decrease, and vice versa with an approximate two year lag period for the lynx (("Lynx-Snowshoe Hare Cycle | Environment And Natural

Environmental changes due to our climate warming is causing terrible effects on the Marten population in the northern reaches of Wisconsin. What climate change is doing to the habit in which the Marten is living in is changing the amount of snowfall the regions in which the Martens are living in are acquiring. Looking at figure 3 you can see that the total snowfall in the two regions where Martens were reintroduced showed significantly less snowfall accumulation in present day compared to the 1980’s. This is extremely important to note because this change in snowfall can deteriorate the critical zone called the subnivium. The subnivium is the seasonal microenvironment underneath the snow (Pauli et al., 2013). This is a small zone where plants and small mammals thrive during the winter. It should be stated that the subnivium insulates the ground creating a pocket of warmth that allows these organisms to survive the harsh Wisconsin winters. The way a subnivium is formed is based on snow duration, density and depth (Pauli et al., 2013). But this is where climate change comes into play. It is causing snowfall to decrease, the time snow is present is decreased and the density of the snow is lower (Pauli et al., 2013). Having these three factor decline is getting rid of the refuge of the subnivium and killing organisms that thrive there. One such organism is the American Marten. These mammals are small enough to crawl down tree trunks where the snow is melted to gain access to the subnivium. This is where the Marten hunts mice and other small mammals to its heart's content. But with the loss of the subnivium Martens can’t hunt in their little paradise. They will have to find other places to hunt and find prey to satisfy their caloric needs. This is where the Fisher has the advantage, since they are too large to access the subnivium. The Fisher

In the northern part of the earth and the upper slopes of all mountains all over the world, a unique biome called tundra exists. Tundra is one of the coldest and harshest biomes of the world. The winters are long and cold, and the summers are short and cool. Tundra is far from the equator; therefore, Tundra soil is generally poor in nutrients. Since the biome is covered in snow throughout the year, the arctic tundra doesn’t seem like a place where plants and animals can survive. Yet, plants and animals are able to survive, thanks to their special adaptations. In fact, it isn’t the freezing temperature that they fear; it is us, human. Today, tundra faces lots of threats and problems because of human. One of the major problem is Global

The Arctic wolf is a sub-species of the grey wolf and lives in the Arctic regions of North America and Greenland. Arctic Wolves also live in, Montebello, Quebec, Canada. The arctic wolf if a mammal.

Reindeer mosses and lingonberries are the producers of the tundra’s food chain (Naik, 2013) . The primary consumers, arctic hare and reindeer, can’t get their energy directly from the sun so they depend on the producers to obtain the energy they need. The arctic fox is the secondary consumer because they prey on arctic hares but also eat berries. The snowy owl, polar bear, and arctic wolf are the tundra’s tertiary consumers. Snowy owls eats the arctic hare and and arctic fox. Arctic wolves eats the arctic hare, arctic fox, and reindeer. Arctic wolves have been known to prey on snowy owls because unlike regular owls they build their nests on the ground. This brings a disadvantage to the snowy owl since it is now more accessible to prey. The last tertiary consumer in this biome is the polar biome. The polar bear consumes the arctic fox, arctic hare, and sometimes the reindeer. Because nothing are predators to the arctic wolf or polar, they die a natural death. When these organisms die they decompose and become nutrients to the producers of this biome. This allows the entire process to be started over again and is important to maintain the ecological balance of the

When the Arctic National Wildlife sanctuary is thought about majority of people think about the miles of ice caps one would see, the polar bears relaxing on or playing with one another and then we hear the noises of a seals barking after they have just finish eating fresh fish for dinner. Now, that this thought is so clear, imagine several massive oil drills, enormous well pumps and all types of heavy hauling equipment popping up all around this area that is so overwhelming peaceful. The argument for such action has been in the works for the last

"Climate change is a change in the statistical properties of the climate system that persists for several decades or longer" (Montgomery, 2015). Climate change (or global warming) can be caused by a natural progress such as sun 's radiations and volcanoes, or it can be caused by human 's actions such as land use, deforestation, and pollution. (Hardy, 2003).This phenomenon not only affects the environment, but it also affects human lives. Alaska is the largest state in the United States. It includes lands on both sides of the Arctic Circle. Sixteen national wildlife refuges are home to a great variety of flora and fauna. In the past 60 years. The Alaska 's environment changed drastically; the climate is warming up as twice as much in comparison to all the other states. This essay will discuss firstly the climate change in the Alaskan environment. Then it will highlight the changes in the ocean and costs, the effects that global warming is having on Alaska 's natives and the melting permafrost. It will then finally address who is responsible for this effects and some measures that can be taken.

Drilling in The Arctic Ocean is the ecosystem changing. The home to many animals is melting. The drilling has caused problems to the water. The ecosystem is sensitive and the rapid melting is changing the home to many. This affects animals and can cause them to be in danger. The ecosystem is gaining more people to go see and people want use their resources. There is a reserve for many animals on the land and the ocean. There is a federation trying to help these animals and provide them they’re natural habitat.

It contains an expanse of tundra with many marshes and lagoons with rivers situated between foothills of the Brooks Range and the wide, icy waters of the Beaufort Sea. Environmentalists said that this area “is the most biologically productive part of the Arctic Refuge for wildlife and is the center if wildlife activity.” The importance of these resources is not measurable. The Arctic is home to such animals as caribou, polar bears, grizzly bears, musk oxen, whales, wolves and snow geese. This area is full of wildflowers and contains water of excellent, unpolluted quality and quantity. The Arctic Ocean costal plain is an area critical to the survival of many birds and mammals (‘Alaska Wild’).

The snowshoe hare is an animal that seems to have a high predation rate and has struggled at times to avoid predators and different types of climate. According to Dashiell Feierabend, Knut Kielland, (2015) the survival and predation of these snowshoe hares was researched for quite some time, yet no true leads have been discovered such as hare’s vulnerability, which leaves the question of what predators and climates can influence their vegetation and coverage. (Feierabend & Kielland, 2015). These beautiful creatures are preyed on by a multitude of different animals and also wander into an array of climates. Sunny, hot, snowy, cold, windy, chances are a snowshoe hare has experienced it all. It is important within a study to cover all of

Chemical cycling is very important in our environment, ecosystem, and everyday life. The snowshoe hare would be involved in the nitrogen cycle. According to Inquiry into Life, in the nitrogen cycle, we have nitrogen fixation, which occurs when the snowshoe hare gets rid of waste, through nitrogen fixing bacteria living in nodules on the roots of crops, which produce organic compounds containing nitrogen available to the host plant so that the plants can form proteins and nucleic acids. Which turns into nitrate producing nutrients back into the ground, soil, and plants. The snowshoe hare doesn’t play a big of role in the environment besides the nitrogen cycle, which is a plus for the plants and ground. They are an important prey animal, and

The Alaskan Malamute is a medium-large to large dog that weighs between 70-95 pounds and measures up to 25". They are best known as sled dogs and are used to hard work. They ideal for cold climates or homes that will keep them cool and hydrated in hot summers. The Alaskan Malamute has a thick, coarse outer coat and wooly, dense undercoat. They are dressed for cold weather. If you own an Alaskan Malamute and live in a warmer climate, you need to make sure that they have a place to get out of the sun and plenty of water.