Published

Credit: Knut Kielland

Credit: Knut Kielland

Browsing by snowshoe hares and moose have dramatic top-down influences on vegetation composition, successional dynamics, and ecosystem function throughout interior Alaska.

Browsing by moose and snowshoe hares affects plant species composition, growth, population dynamics, nutrient cycling, and ecosystem function at both stand and landscape scales, causing effects that can persist for decades. Both species selectively consume willows, leading to the dominance of alder, an important nitrogen-fixing species that is chemically defended against herbivory. Snowshoe hare abundance varies nearly as much on an intra-annual basis as it does across a decadal population cycle, underscoring the complex interaction of biophysical factors. This in turn influences predation intensity and the population abundance of lynx, which is largely controlled by emigration and immigration.

 

Learn more

  1. Feierabend, D, and K Kielland. 2015. Seasonal effects of habitat on sources and rates of snowshoe hare predation in Alaskan boreal forests. PLoS ONE. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0143543
  2. Kielland, K et al. 2010. Demography of snowshoe hares in relation to regional climate variability during a 10-year population cycle in interior Alaska. Canadian Journal of Forest Research. doi: 10.1371/journal. pone.0143543

Contact

Roger Ruess
rwruess@alaska.edu

Posted:  July 15, 2020