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Alaska hare

Lepus othus · Hares and rabbits · Small game

Alaska hare (Lepus othus): Largest hare in North America, 0.5-0.7 m long, with very large hind feet (nearly 20 cm). Fairly short ears; tips are black year-round. This profile does not establish whether taking it is legal anywhere.

Check rules for a place and dateOpen the alaska hare map

Certified rules currently represented in Hunt: coverage in development. This is coverage, not a legal answer.

Alaska hare — verified North Ground species photograph
Adobe Stock · Standard License (asset 678638)
Scientific name
Lepus othus
Family
Leporidae
In North America
Native
Range
Northern and western Alaska (also eastern Siberia).
Biology

How to identify it

Largest hare in North America, 0.5-0.7 m long, with very large hind feet (nearly 20 cm). [1]

Fairly short ears; tips are black year-round. [1]

Summer coat grey-brown with white underside. [1]

Winter coat entirely white except black ear tips. [1]

Compared with the arctic hare: Very similar; separated mainly by range (source says they occupy different geographic ranges). [1]

Species it is confused with

Check these before deciding what you are looking at. If you are not certain what it is, do not shoot.

Field notes

  • Identification Confirm a alaska hare before you act. Compared with the arctic hare: Very similar; separated mainly by range (source says they occupy different geographic ranges).[1]
Field knowledge

Where it lives

Rocky slopes, upland tundra and brushy areas. [1]

Field knowledge

How it behaves

Most active at dusk and dawn [1]

Generally solitary, but 20 or more may gather in the April-May mating season [1]

Relies on camouflage rather than aggression [1]

Regulatory handoff

Where it is listed for legal take

These authorities list this species for legal take in their own regulations.

Where legal take is listed

Being listed is not an open season. Seasons, zones, licences, methods and limits decide whether this animal may be taken on a given day and place — check Hunt or the authority before you go. Listings read 2026-09-30.

Geospatial intelligence

Where it is found

Northern and western Alaska (also eastern Siberia).

Biology

Sources

Every claim above is attributed to one of these published sources.

  1. BIOLOGICALAlaskan Hare

    Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology · reviewed 2026-09-30

    Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology