Its range extends into northeastern U.S. in mountainous areas as far south as Virginia, and south in the Rockies to central New Mexico. In our state, hares are found in parts of the Allegheny Mountains, high plateaus in the northwest and the Pocono region. In the far north, hare populations fluctuate dramatically. At times, snowshoes become very abundant, with as many as 500-1,000 individuals per square mile in primary range. Then the population goes down rapidly for 3-5 years, hits bottom and starts to climb gradually toward another peak.
Peaks occur about nine years apart.
When hares are abundant for several years, predators increase. Should hares decline over a large area, goshawks and snowy owls range much farther south, while land predators starve or go hungry. It's unknown whether Pennsylvania's snowshoes go through population cycles similar to hare populations in Canada. But hare harvests have been relatively stable from year to year in the commonwealth. Habitat Snowshoes inhabit mixed deciduous forests with conifers and escape cover such as rhododendron and mountain laurel.