Mountain hare, Hokkaido subspecies
Amazing fact
The Hokkaido mountain hare’s large hind feet act like snowshoes, helping it avoid sinking into snow.
多摩動物公園
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An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
The Hokkaido mountain hare’s large hind feet act like snowshoes, helping it avoid sinking into snow.
THE REAL WORLD
The real Mountain hare, Hokkaido subspecies
- Scientific name
- Lepus timidus ainu
- Japanese name
- エゾユキウサギ
- Group
- Land mammals
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Lagomorpha
- Family
- Leporidae
- Genus
- Lepus
This page introduces the Hokkaido subspecies of the mountain hare.
It is a subspecies of the mountain hare, which lives widely across northern Eurasia, and it is bigger than the Japanese hare.
Its fur changes with the seasons: brownish all over in summer and pure white all over in winter.
It is active at night and rests in thickets or in holes in the snow during the day.
How the Mountain hare, Hokkaido subspecies lives
It eats foods such as buds, leaves, grass roots and bark. In winter, it brushes snow off its food with its paws. Before resting, it may jump sideways away from its own tracks. Even while resting during the day, it sleeps in brief spells.
多摩動物公園University of Michigan Animal Diversity WebBasic data
- Size
- Head and body length: 50–58 cm
- Weight
- 2.4–3.2 kg
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)
- Diet
- Tree buds, leaves, grass, grass roots, and bark
- Range
- Japan: Hokkaido
Where the Mountain hare, Hokkaido subspecies has been recorded
Records: GBIF.org (CC0 and CC BY 4.0 records, retrieved 2026-11-07). Map: Natural EarthSee the records on GBIF
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- 多摩動物公園 — ユキウサギ（エゾユキウサギ）Checked: 2026-11-03
- University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web — Lepus timidusChecked: 2026-11-03
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
Report a mistakeWhen you meet the Mountain hare, Hokkaido subspecies, look for this
- Look for careful grooming while it is awake.
Animals do different things from day to day, so you may not always see this.
University of Michigan Animal Diversity WebEXHIBIT INFORMATION
Places that keep or show the Mountain hare, Hokkaido subspecies
Zoos, aquariums and other places whose official websites say they keep or show this animal.
Kanto
Displays can change with the animals’ health and the seasons. Check each facility’s official website before you go.
RELATIVES
Others in Leporidae
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