Lynx-hare cycle

May, R.M. (1980). Cree-Ojibwa hunting and the hare-lynx cycle. Nature 286, 108-109. 

Many population cycles have the unusual property that their period length remains remarkably constant while their abundance levels are highly erratic. Fig. 15.8a demonstrates these features for one of the most celebrated time series in Ecology - the Canadian hare-lynx cycle. In [28, 29] is was shown that such more complex oscillations can be achieved in simple predator-prey models by including more trophic levels. To describe the main dynamics of the lynx the following ecological foodweb model was presented... 

FIGURE 6.20.3 One-hundred-year record of population cycles of the snowshoe hare Lepus americanus) and the Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis), based on pelt records of the Hudson s Bay Company in Canada. Lack of anticipation in predator-prey systems lead to unstable population oscillations. (From Gotelli, N.J., A Primer of Ecology, Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, MA, 1998. With permission.)... 

Figure 4.10.30 (a, b) Oscillations in population density changes in the abundance ofthe lynx and snowshoe hare, indicated by the number of pelts (per year) received by the Hudson Bay Company from 1885-1900 [(a) oscillations of populations with time, (b) limit cycle]. 

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