The Northern Bog Lemming, Synaptomys borealis is a small North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

n lemming

Lemming

Lemmings are small rodents, usually found in or near the Arctic, in tundra biomes. They are subniveal animals, and together with voles and muskrats, they make up the subfamily Arvicolinae , which forms part of the largest mammal radiation by far, the superfamily Muroidea, which also includes rats,...

. This is one of two species in genus Synaptomys, the other being the Southern Bog Lemming

Southern Bog Lemming

The Southern Bog Lemming, Synaptomys cooperi is a small North American lemming. Its range overlaps with the other species in genus Synaptomys, the Northern Bog Lemming, in southeastern Canada but extends further south....

.

They have cylindrical bodies covered with long grey or brown fur with pale grey underparts. There is a patch of rust-coloured hair at the base of the ears. They have small eyes, a hairy snout and a short tail. They have 16 teeth and their upper incisors are grooved. They are 13 cm long with a 2 cm tail and weigh about 30 g.

These animals are found in wet northern forests, bog

Bog

A bog, quagmire or mire is a wetland that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—often mosses or, in Arctic climates, lichens....

s, tundra

Tundra

In physical geography, tundra is a biome where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. The term tundra comes through Russian тундра from the Kildin Sami word tūndâr "uplands," "treeless mountain tract." There are three types of tundra: Arctic tundra, alpine...

 and meadows in Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

 and northern Washington and New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

. They feed on grasses, sedges, other green vegetation and moss

Moss

Mosses are small, soft plants that are typically 1–10 cm tall, though some species are much larger. They commonly grow close together in clumps or mats in damp or shady locations. They do not have flowers or seeds, and their simple leaves cover the thin wiry stems...

es, also snails and slugs. Their droppings are green. Predators include owl

Owl

Owls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...

s, hawk

Hawk

The term hawk can be used in several ways:* In strict usage in Australia and Africa, to mean any of the species in the subfamily Accipitrinae, which comprises the genera Accipiter, Micronisus, Melierax, Urotriorchis and Megatriorchis. The large and widespread Accipiter genus includes goshawks,...

s, mustelids and snakes.

Female lemmings have 2 or 3 litters of 4 to 6 young in a year. The young are born in a nest in an underground burrow or concealed in vegetation.

They are active year round, day and night. They make runways through the surface vegetation and also dig underground burrows. They burrow under the snow in winter. These animals are often found in small colonies. Lemming populations go through a 3 or 4 year cycle of boom and bust.