Mammals of the WorldIndian Hare
Lepus nigricollis
- Order
- Lagomorpha
- Family
- Leporidae
- Genus
- Lepus
- IUCN status
- LC
- Distribution
- Pakistan|India|Nepal|Bangladesh|Bhutan|Sri Lanka
- Realm
- Indomalaya
Other names: Black-napped Hare|Indian Desert Hare|Rufous-tailed Hare
About this species
- Size
- Head and body 33–53cm; ears 8–12cm
- Weight
- 1.8–3.6kg
- Diet
- Grasses and other plants
- Habitat
- Open grassy areas, cultivated plains, semi-arid and arid plains and hills
- Range
- Indian subcontinent and Java; introduced elsewhere
The Indian hare, or black-naped hare, is a common, medium-sized hare of the Indian subcontinent. Its coat is black and rufous, with rufous especially on the legs and breast, a white underside and a brown tail. Head and body length is 33–53 cm, the ears are 8–12 cm long, the hind feet are large and well furred, and the tail is rather long at about 6.4 cm. Adults weigh 1.8–3.6 kg. The tail and neck patch differ between subspecies (Wikipedia, general species account).
It lives in open grassy areas, cultivated plains, semi-arid and arid plains and hills throughout the Indian subcontinent and Sri Lanka, and in Java. It has been introduced to islands including the Andaman Islands, Madagascar, Mauritius and Papua New Guinea. It is crepuscular and nocturnal. The cached account is short and gives no further detail on diet or breeding (Wikipedia, general species account).
Description: Wildlife of India guide, Wildlife of Everywhere (wildlifeofeverywhere.com); general species information paraphrased from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)