White-tailed Jackrabbit
Lepus townsendii
Status
Extirpated (Locally extinct)
Description
White-tailed Jackrabbits are very large hares (50cm/22in tall) with large, distinctive black-tipped ears. They are light brown to brownish-gray with pale grey underparts. The tail is white with a black stripe and is held aloft when fleeing predators. In the northern part of their range, White-tailed Jackrabbits will be moult and become all white (except the ears) in the winter.
White-tailed Jackrabbits are extirpated from BC.
Habitat
Jackrabbits live in open grasslands and sagebrush plains. At higher elevations, they can be found in open areas adjacent to pine forests and in alpine tundra. They rest by day usually in shallow depressions (forms) at base of bush
Threats
The extirpation (disappearance) of White-tailed Jackrabbits in BC is attributed mainly to severe habitat loss and dramatic decline in the quality of remaining habitat.
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