P.E.I. may have more snowshoe hares since Fiona, wildlife biologist says

Snowshoe hares appear to be more common across Prince Edward Island in the years since post-tropical storm Fiona, says a provincial wildlife biologist.

Garry Gregory with P.E.I.’s fish and wildlife division said he’s been hearing from Islanders who are suddenly noticing more “rabbits” in their yards.

But those animals aren’t actually rabbits, which are not native to the province. Gregory said what Islanders are seeing are almost certainly snowshoe hares.

“We certainly get lots of calls about rabbits, and lots of … anecdotal reports of people seeing snowshoe hares in and about their yards and properties,” he said.

“To say that it is more than usual would be difficult to say … but certainly we get lots of reports.”

While there’s no formal tracking data to confirm whether the snowshoe hare population has increased, Gregory said changes to the landscape since Fiona make it “absolutely reasonable” to suspect the number has increased.

He added that the 2022 storm left behind dense, tangled debris in forests and woodlots across P.E.I. Brush piles, downed trees and thick patches of deadfall have created escape cover that’s ideal for hares.

“A lot of the woods … you couldn’t get through it unless you were a snowshoe hare,” Gregory said of the period after the storm. “If you were a predator of any size … snowshoe hare would be basically inaccessible.”

With more places to hide, more hares survive and that can lead to a bump in the population.

Over time, that cover will decline as debris breaks down and coniferous trees lose their needles. As that happens, Gregory said, the advantages hares gained from the storm will slowly ease.

New growth means more winter food

When Fiona knocked down trees, it also opened up the forest canopy to sunlight, Gregory said.

That’s allowed early successional, shade-intolerant plants to take off — the kind of growth hares rely on for food in winter.

Gregory points to willows, grey birch, some maples and pin cherry as examples.

“That would be prime peak of winter forage availability for snowshoe hares,” he said, noting that hares feed on the twigs and buds of those species in the colder months.

He said the new habitat also benefits other wildlife, including songbirds such as chestnut-sided and yellow warblers, as well as American woodcock and ruffed grouse, which all use early successional growth.

However, Gregory noted that it could take decades for some stands, such as white spruce, to once again resemble what they looked like before Fiona.

He added that more hares on the ground doesn’t necessarily mean more predators on P.E.I.

In northern parts of Canada, species like lynx are tightly linked to snowshoe hare populations, and predator numbers can rise and fall alongside hare cycles. On P.E.I., he said, predators are generalists.

“They eat some snowshoe hare, but they also eat lots of other things.”

‘There’s absolutely no reason to feed them’

For Islanders who find hares in their yards, Gregory said there’s usually no problem to solve, aside from some nibbling on vegetable gardens.

Hares typically try to avoid people and are most active around dawn and dusk.

And if you see them, don’t feed them.

“There’s absolutely no reason to feed them,” Gregory said. “In the in the summertime, they feed on grass and herbaceous growth, which is virtually unlimited.… They don’t tend to take very well to feeding anyway because they could be particularly wary.”

Feeding the hares could also draw them closer to dogs, he added, which may chase or kill them.

Gregory said the province is also hearing from people who spot hares with ticks.

He said the rise in reports may be because more people now carry phones and can take photos, combined with growing public concern about ticks and Lyme disease.

But the tick species commonly found on hares — often called “rabbit ticks” — are not the ones officials worry about for Lyme disease, he said, and are generally specific to wild hares and rabbits.

“Seeing ticks on and around a hare and its ears and its face is completely normal,” Gregory said, adding that there’s typically no serious health impact for the animal unless the infestation is severe.