Denise Gijbels, age 11, of Agincourt, Ontario, Canada, for her question:

How long does the snowshoe rabbit take to change color?

The snowshoe rabbit, alias the varying hate, changes the color of his furry coat twice a year. In fall, he changes from reddish browns and greys to a fluffy outfit of winter white. In spring, he changes back to his summer suit of earthy colors. Of course, this remarkable masquerade enables him to blend in with the winter and summer scenery of his northern neighborhood. Some old timers insist that he changes his color in a single day. Actually the miraculous transformation takes at least two weeks and usually longer.

The previous coat is shed tuft by furry tuft. The replacements are patches of either white for winter or earthy blends for the taming summer. For a few weeks, the varying hate is a pinto type bunny. This is convenient because it occurs during a between season, when the ground is a patchwork of white snow and earthy browns. The pinto bunny is right in style with the scenery. It takes him several weeks to grow the new coat necessary to complete his color change. By this time, the scenery should match his coat.