View source for Dicrostonyx groenlandicus

{{Taxon infobox}}
==Description==
From Handley (1953) for the Parry Islands of the Canadian Archipelago: "Adult summer coloration: Mass effect bright gray above; dorsum, except for lighter areas on shoulders, rather uniformly colored from snout to tail; light band on dorsal hairs typically pure white; subapical orange band on dorsal hairs narrow or absent and contributing little to mass color effect; orange of sides typically invading dorsum in shoulder region only slightly; faint but readily discernible black median dorsal stripe extending from snout to base of tail; rump gray; ear patches between Sanford's Brown and Amber Brown; tail and feet whitish; belly washed with orange ranging in hue from Pale Ochraceous-Buff to Sanford's Brown, darkest color concentrated along midline and on chest, forming and obscure collar; flanks, especially at base of fore leg, tinged with orange of same hue as belly. Juvenal summer coloration: Dorsum grayish-brown, varying with season and individual from Snuff Brown to Sudan Brown; shoulders lighter than remainder of dorsum; black median dorsal stripe well defined and extending from forehead to base of tail; underparts varying from buffy to almost white; throat collar poorly developed. Winter pelage: white."

From Handley (1953) for the southern half of Baffin Island, Northwest Territories, Canada: "Adult summer coloration: Black in dorsal pelage reduced and light band on dorsal hairs pale buff, rendering mass effect between Avellaneous and Drab; black median dorsal stripe not well defined; ear patch Ochraceous-Tawny; feet and tail whitish; orange wash on flanks reduced and not extending on dorsum in shoulder region; underparts typically pale (Pale Ochraceous-Buff to almost white); throat collar and orange median ventral line pale, but well defined because of lighter background. Juvenal summer coloration: Dorsum relatively dark (Sayal Brown); shoulders scarcely differentiated from remainder of dorsum; black median dorsal line well defined; belly light buff to whitish; throat collar poorly developed. Winter pelage: white."

Members of ''Dicrostonyx'' are the only rodents in North America that turn white in winter.

[[File:Dicrostonyx groenlandicus image by Samuel Brinker.png|600px|thumb|none|''Dicrostonyx groenlandicus'' observed in Canada by Samuel Brinker.]]
[[File:Dicrostonyx groenlandicus image by johnwmyles.png|600px|thumb|none|''Dicrostonyx groenlandicus'' observed in Alaska by John W. Myles.]]

== External measurements ==
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==Skull==
<div><ul> 
<li style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: top;"> [[File:UAM13696 Dicrostonyx groenlandicus skull lateral.jpg|400px|thumb|Lateral view of the skull of ''Dicrostonyx groenlandicus''.]]
<li style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: top;"> [[File:UAM13696 Dicrostonyx groenlandicus skull dorsal.jpg|400px|thumb|Dorsal view of the skull of ''Dicrostonyx groenlandicus''.]]
<li style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: top;"> [[File:UAM13696 Dicrostonyx groenlandicus skull ventral.jpg|400px|thumb|Ventral view of the skull of ''Dicrostonyx groenlandicus''.]]
<li style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: top;"> [[File:UAM13696 Dicrostonyx groenlandicus upper incisors.jpg|400px|thumb|The upper incisors of ''Dicrostonyx groenlandicus'' lack grooves.]]
<li style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: top;"> [[File:UAM13696 Dicrostonyx groenlandicus upper molars.jpg|400px|thumb|Upper molars of ''Dicrostonyx groenlandicus''.  M1 and M2 usually terminate with a narrow lingual and labial loop (Naughton, 2012).]]
<li style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: top;"> [[File:UAM13696 Dicrostonyx groenlandicus lower molars.jpg|400px|thumb|Lower molars of ''Dicrostonyx groenlandicus''. Second and third lower molars (m2 and m3) typically begin with narrow loops (Naughton, 2012).]]
<li style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: top;"> [[File:NEON01II6 Dicrostonyx groenlandicus skull dorsal.jpg|thumb|400px|Dorsal view of the skull of a juvenile ''Dicrostonyx groenlandicus''.]]
</ul></div>

==References==
Handley CO. 1953. Three new lemmings (''Dicrostonyx'') from arctic America. Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences 43(6):197-200.

Naughton D. 2012. The natural history of Canadian mammals. Toronto (ON, CA): University of Toronto Press.

Scoresby W. 1823. Journal of a Voyage to the Northern Whale-Fishery; including Researches and Discoveries on the Eastern Coast of West Greenland, made in the Summer of 1822, in the Ship Baffin of Liverpool. Archibald Constable & Co., Edinburgh, 472 pp.