NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Alaska Arctic Hare
Lepus othus Merriam, 1900
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Alaskan hare (Lepus othus), also known as the tundra hare, is a species of mammal in the family Leporidae. They do not dig burrows and are found in the open tundra of western Alaska and the Alaska Peninsula in the United States. They are solitary for most of the year except during mating season, when they produce a single litter of up to eight young. Predators include birds of prey (such as the snowy owl), lynx, mustelids and wolves, among other animals, as well as humans (typically hunted for food).
Wikipedia contributors, Alaskan hare; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:11:40.999325+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Lepus othus Merriam, 1900
- Name authority
- Merriam, 1900
- Common name
- Alaska Arctic Hare
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Lagomorpha
- Family
- Leporidae
- Genus
- Lepus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderLagomorpha Brandt, 1855
- familyLeporidae Fischer, 1817
- genusLepus Linnaeus, 1758
- speciesLepus othus Merriam, 1900
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Lepus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain HareLepus timidus Linnaeus, 1758 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Snowshoe HareLepus americanus Erxleben, 1777 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Ethiopian HareLepus fagani Thomas, 1903 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Arabian HareLepus capensis Linnaeus, 1758 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Yunnan HareLepus comus Allen, 1927 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Corsican HareLepus corsicanus de Winton, 1898 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-tailed Jack RabbitLepus californicus Gray, 1837 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black JackrabbitLepus insularis W. Bryant, 1891 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Hainan HareLepus hainanus Swinhoe, 1870 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Tehuantepec JackrabbitLepus flavigularis Wagner, 1844 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| White-tailed Jack RabbitLepus townsendii Bachman, 1839 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Arctic HareLepus arcticus Ross, 1819 | LeporidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=552513 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:6PPQ7. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.