Revised distribution of an Alaskan endemic, the Alaska Hare (Lepus othus), with implications for taxonomy, biogeography, and climate change

The Alaska Hare (Lepus othus Merriam 1900) is the largest lagomorph in North America but remains one of the most poorly studied terrestrial mammals on the continent. Its current distribution is restricted to western Alaska south of the Brooks Range, but historical accounts from north of the Brooks R...

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Published in:	Arctic Science
Main Authors:	Michelle M. Cason, Andrew P. Baltensperger, Travis L. Booms, John J. Burns, Link E. Olson
Format:	Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:	English French
Published:	Canadian Science Publishing 2016
Subjects:	Alaska Hare Arctic Hare Lepus othus Mountain Hare North Slope lièvre d’Alaska Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 Arctic Bering Sea Arctic hare Brooks Range Climate change Lepus timidus mountain hare north slope Alaska
Online Access:	https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2015-0019 https://doaj.org/article/a21dbaa75a9045a49afc18601662e354

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spelling	ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:a21dbaa75a9045a49afc18601662e354 2023-05-15T14:23:51+02:00 Revised distribution of an Alaskan endemic, the Alaska Hare (Lepus othus), with implications for taxonomy, biogeography, and climate change Michelle M. Cason Andrew P. Baltensperger Travis L. Booms John J. Burns Link E. Olson 2016-06-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2015-0019 https://doaj.org/article/a21dbaa75a9045a49afc18601662e354 EN FR eng fre Canadian Science Publishing https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/as-2015-0019 https://doaj.org/toc/2368-7460 doi:10.1139/as-2015-0019 2368-7460 https://doaj.org/article/a21dbaa75a9045a49afc18601662e354 Arctic Science, Vol 2, Iss 2, Pp 50-66 (2016) Alaska Hare Arctic Hare Lepus othus Mountain Hare North Slope lièvre d’Alaska Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 article 2016 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2015-0019 2022-12-30T21:31:36Z The Alaska Hare (Lepus othus Merriam 1900) is the largest lagomorph in North America but remains one of the most poorly studied terrestrial mammals on the continent. Its current distribution is restricted to western Alaska south of the Brooks Range, but historical accounts from north of the Brooks Range (the North Slope) have led to confusion over its past, present, and predicted future distributions. To determine if L. othus occurs or historically occurred on the North Slope, we surveyed museum collections, vetted observational accounts, and produced a spatial distribution model based on the resulting georeferenced records. We located a historic specimen long presumed lost that suggests the occurrence of L. othus on the North Slope as recently as the late 1800s. We also uncovered evidence of L. othus and (or) Mountain Hare (Lepus timidus Linnaeus 1758) on several islands in the Bering Sea, raising the possibility of recurring gene flow between these closely related species across seasonal ice connecting Asia and North America. While our results paint a more complete picture of the current distribution of L. othus, persistent uncertainties surrounding its taxonomic status and potential northward range shift onto lands reserved for oil and gas development call for additional study. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Arctic hare Arctic Bering Sea Brooks Range Climate change Lepus timidus mountain hare north slope Alaska Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Bering Sea Arctic Science 2 2 50 66
institution	Open Polar
collection	Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles
op_collection_id	ftdoajarticles
language	English French
topic	Alaska Hare Arctic Hare Lepus othus Mountain Hare North Slope lièvre d’Alaska Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171
spellingShingle	Alaska Hare Arctic Hare Lepus othus Mountain Hare North Slope lièvre d’Alaska Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 Michelle M. Cason Andrew P. Baltensperger Travis L. Booms John J. Burns Link E. Olson Revised distribution of an Alaskan endemic, the Alaska Hare (Lepus othus), with implications for taxonomy, biogeography, and climate change
topic_facet	Alaska Hare Arctic Hare Lepus othus Mountain Hare North Slope lièvre d’Alaska Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171
description	The Alaska Hare (Lepus othus Merriam 1900) is the largest lagomorph in North America but remains one of the most poorly studied terrestrial mammals on the continent. Its current distribution is restricted to western Alaska south of the Brooks Range, but historical accounts from north of the Brooks Range (the North Slope) have led to confusion over its past, present, and predicted future distributions. To determine if L. othus occurs or historically occurred on the North Slope, we surveyed museum collections, vetted observational accounts, and produced a spatial distribution model based on the resulting georeferenced records. We located a historic specimen long presumed lost that suggests the occurrence of L. othus on the North Slope as recently as the late 1800s. We also uncovered evidence of L. othus and (or) Mountain Hare (Lepus timidus Linnaeus 1758) on several islands in the Bering Sea, raising the possibility of recurring gene flow between these closely related species across seasonal ice connecting Asia and North America. While our results paint a more complete picture of the current distribution of L. othus, persistent uncertainties surrounding its taxonomic status and potential northward range shift onto lands reserved for oil and gas development call for additional study.
format	Article in Journal/Newspaper
author	Michelle M. Cason Andrew P. Baltensperger Travis L. Booms John J. Burns Link E. Olson
author_facet	Michelle M. Cason Andrew P. Baltensperger Travis L. Booms John J. Burns Link E. Olson
author_sort	Michelle M. Cason
title	Revised distribution of an Alaskan endemic, the Alaska Hare (Lepus othus), with implications for taxonomy, biogeography, and climate change
title_short	Revised distribution of an Alaskan endemic, the Alaska Hare (Lepus othus), with implications for taxonomy, biogeography, and climate change
title_full	Revised distribution of an Alaskan endemic, the Alaska Hare (Lepus othus), with implications for taxonomy, biogeography, and climate change
title_fullStr	Revised distribution of an Alaskan endemic, the Alaska Hare (Lepus othus), with implications for taxonomy, biogeography, and climate change
title_full_unstemmed	Revised distribution of an Alaskan endemic, the Alaska Hare (Lepus othus), with implications for taxonomy, biogeography, and climate change
title_sort	revised distribution of an alaskan endemic, the alaska hare (lepus othus), with implications for taxonomy, biogeography, and climate change
publisher	Canadian Science Publishing
publishDate	2016
url	https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2015-0019 https://doaj.org/article/a21dbaa75a9045a49afc18601662e354
geographic	Arctic Bering Sea
geographic_facet	Arctic Bering Sea
genre	Arctic Arctic hare Arctic Bering Sea Brooks Range Climate change Lepus timidus mountain hare north slope Alaska
genre_facet	Arctic Arctic hare Arctic Bering Sea Brooks Range Climate change Lepus timidus mountain hare north slope Alaska
op_source	Arctic Science, Vol 2, Iss 2, Pp 50-66 (2016)
op_relation	https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/as-2015-0019 https://doaj.org/toc/2368-7460 doi:10.1139/as-2015-0019 2368-7460 https://doaj.org/article/a21dbaa75a9045a49afc18601662e354
op_doi	https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2015-0019
container_title	Arctic Science
container_volume	2
container_issue	2
container_start_page	50
op_container_end_page	66
_version_	1766296327286685696

Revised distribution of an Alaskan endemic, the Alaska Hare (Lepus othus), with implications for taxonomy, biogeography, and climate change

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