"Northern Collared Lemmings live farther north than any other rodent, making their homes on the Arctic tundra. They are among the few North American mammals to turn completely white in winter. Lessening day length triggers other changes as well: they gain weight, sometimes almost doubling their body mass, and develop forked claws for digging through snow and ice. When day length increases in spring, the changes are reversed, and the animal's coat becomes grayish-buff to dark gray. Collared lemmings inhabit high, dry, rocky areas of the tundra. In winter, they may move to meadows at lower elevations."

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Mammal Species of the World

This species is found in northern Greenland and Queen Elizabeth Islands, islands in the District of Franklin, and Southampton Island; and northern North America above the tree line, from the northeastern District of Keewatin, Canada, to northern Alaska, United States (Musser and Carleton, in Wilson and Reeder 2005).

Tundra biomes of Alaska; arctic islands of Canada, Northwest Territories; Greenland; St. Lawrence Island and Wrangel Island(Siberia) (Nowak, 1999; Wooding, 1982).

Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Native ); palearctic (Native )

occurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

Canada

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

United States

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

Global Range: (>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)) Northern Greenland and Queen Elizabeth Islands, islands in the District of Franklin, and Southhampton Island; northern North America above treeline, from the northeastern District of Keewatin, Canada, to northern Alaska (Musser and Carleton, in Wilson and Reeder 2005).

The collared lemming is short and stocky with a very heavy coat year round. Pelage varies with the seasons: in summer the coat is light to dark grey with a buffy to reddish brown tone. Dark lines down the back and on the sides of the head are characteristic, however, the length of the stripe varies from ending just before the withers, to continuing down the length of the back (Hinton, 1926). The winter coat color is uninterrupted white. Dicrostonyx is the only genus in Rodentia in which the individuals have completely white coats in the winter season.

The head and body length equal approximately 100-157 mm with a tail of between 10 and 20 mm. This species is fossorial, developing a unique double digging claw in the winter to break through the ice and snow of the tundra (Marsden, 1964; Nowak, 1999). D. groenlandicus can easily be distinguished from other species of the genus by its narrow rostrum, smaller, straighter incisors and the unusually short hind foot (Hinton, 1926).

Range mass: 30 to 112 g.

Average basal metabolic rate: 0.459 W.

Length: 16 cm

Weight: 112 grams

Length:
Average: 145 mm
Range: 110-177 mm

Weight:
Range: 30-112 g

Habitat and Ecology

Systems

• Terrestrial

D. groenlandicus is mainly terrestrial and fossorial, however, this lemming can also be found swimming in the arctic waters.

Terrestrial Biomes: tundra

Comments: Arctic tundra. Occupies runways beneath snow; also tunnel systems down to permafrost level.

Non-Migrant: Yes. At least some populations of this species do not make significant seasonal migrations. Juvenile dispersal is not considered a migration.

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make local extended movements (generally less than 200 km) at particular times of the year (e.g., to breeding or wintering grounds, to hibernation sites).

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make annual migrations of over 200 km.

The diet of D. groenlandicus consists of willow buds, fruits, flowers, grasses and twigs (Wooding, 1982). They will eat mushrooms and mosses in captivity. The morphology of the teeth suggests that they prey on insects, but this behavior has not been observed by individuals in the wild (Marsden, 1964; Nowak, 1999).

Average lifespan

Status: captivity: 3.3 years.

Maximum longevity: 3.3 years Observations: These animals can live up to 3.3 years (Ronald Nowak 1999).

The female estrus cycle lasts for 9.6 days, occuring several times in the breeding season, which runs from January to September (it may begin early depending on the severity of the weather). After a 19-21 day gestation, a litter of between 1 and 11 is born. A female typically has two to three litters per year in the wild; however, in captivity they can have up to five. The young weigh 3.8 g (average) at partruition and are weaned at 15-20 days (Marsden, 1964; Nowak, 1999).

Average birth mass: 4.35 g.

Average gestation period: 20 days.

Average number of offspring: 3.4.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male)

Sex: male: 85 days.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)

Sex: female: 40 days.

Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLDS) Stats
Public Records: 0
Species: 312
Species With Barcodes: 1

US Federal List: no special status

CITES: no special status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern

Canada

Rounded National Status Rank: N5 - Secure

United States

Rounded National Status Rank: N3 - Vulnerable

Rounded Global Status Rank: G5 - Secure

Reasons: Occurs in northern Greenland and Queen Elizabeth Islands, south to Baffin and Southhampton Islands and northeastern mainland of Nunavut, Canada; limits uncertain.

Population

Population Trend

Major Threats

Comments: A study of mammal diversity patterns in Canada suggests that climate change could alter and effectively remove approximately 60% of D. groenlandicus habitat with unpredictable but likely detrimental consequences for this species in the future (Kerr and Packer 1998).

Conservation Actions

Eskimos use the soft white winter coats of the collared lemming for clothing decoration and toys for the children (Nowak, 1999).

Comments: Taxonomy of Dicrostonyx is complex and unstable. Dicrostonyx groenlandicus was regarded as part of a single circumpolar species, D. torquatus, until the 1970s when karyological and breeding studies indicated the possible existence of a superspecies complex among North American Dicrostonyx (Rausch and Rausch 1972, Rausch 1977; see also Krohne 1982). Former subspecies occurring in western Canada and Alaska were recognized as separate species based mainly on karyotypes (Rausch and Rausch 1972, Rausch 1977, Krohne 1982, Honacki et al. 1982, Baker et al. 2003). Jarrell and Fredga (1993) and Engstrom (1999) suggested treating D. hudsonius, D. richardsoni, and D. groenlandicus as distinct species (the latter including the other North American Dicrostonyx populations as subspecies), and molecular data (Fedorov and Goropashnaya 1999) supports this taxonomy. Musser and Carleton (in Wilson and Reeder 2005) reviewed these and subsequent studies and recognized eight Dicrostonyx species, six of which (groenlandicus, hudsonius, nelsoni, nunatakensis, richardsoni, and unalascensis) occur in North America. Baker et al. (2003) recognized D. exsul, D. kilangmiutak, and D. rubricatus as species, but Musser and Carleton recognized exsul as a synonym of D. nelsoni, and kilangmiutak and rubricatus were treated as synonyms of D. groenlandicus. Fedorov and Stenseth (2002) followed Fedorov and Goropashnaya (1999) in recognizing three North American Dicrostonyx species.

See Borowik and Engstrom (1993), Engstrom (1993), Eger (1995), Fedorov et al. (1999), Fedorov and Goropashnaya (1999), Ehrich et al. (2000), and Fedorov and Stenseth (2002) for information on chromosomal, morphological, and genetic variation and evolutionary relationships.