Mammals of the WorldEuropean Hare
Lepus europaeus
- Order
- Lagomorpha
- Family
- Leporidae
- Genus
- Lepus
- IUCN status
- LC
- Distribution
- Spain|France|United Kingdom|Belgium|Luxembourg|Netherlands|Switzerland|Italy|Germany|Liechtenstein|Austria|Slovenia|Slovakia|Croatia|Bosnia and Herzegovina|Hungary|Czech Republic|Poland|Serbia|Kosovo|Albania|Montenegro|North Macedonia|Greece|Bulgaria|Romania|Moldova|Ukraine|Belarus|Lithuania|Latvia|Estonia|Finland|Russia|Armenia|Azerbaijan|Georgia|Turkey|Syria|Iraq|Iran|Kazakhstan|Uzbekistan|Mongolia|China?
- Realm
- Palearctic
Other names: Brown Hare|European Brown Hare
About this species
- Size
- 490–620mm
- Weight
- 3–5kg
- Diet
- Grasses, herbs, twigs, buds, bark, and crops
- Habitat
- Temperate open country and farmland
- Range
- Europe and parts of Asia
The European hare is a large, long-legged hare of open country. Adults are roughly 490–620mm and 3–5kg, with very long ears tipped black, powerful hind legs, and a short tail black above and white below. The coat is yellow-brown to grey-brown, flecked with black. It differs from rabbits by its larger size, longer limbs and ears, and black-backed tail held low in flight. (Argentina National Parks species account)
Hares feed mainly on grasses and herbs, adding twigs, buds, bark, and field crops, especially in winter. They rest in shallow surface forms rather than burrows and rely on speed and endurance to escape predators. Although usually nocturnal and wary, spring courtship brings conspicuous daytime chasing and boxing. The opened accounts did not establish whether Mongolian records represent a continuous natural range or local introductions. (Wikipedia, general species account)
Description: Wildlife of Mongolia guide, Wildlife of Everywhere (wildlifeofeverywhere.com); general species information paraphrased from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)