Lepus europaeus
TAXONOMY
Lepus europaeus Pallas, 1778, southwest Poland. Thirty sub-species.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
English: Brown hare; French: Lièvre brun; German: Feldhase; Spanish: Liebre común.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Body length 20–27 in (52–68 cm), tail 3–5 in (8–12 cm), body weight 5.5–14 lb (2,500–6,000 g). A large hare that is brown throughout the year with long ears, relatively long tail, and long limbs.
DISTRIBUTION
Most of Europe, south to Iran, and into western Siberia. Introduced in eastern North America, southern South America, southeastern Australia, New Zealand, and several islands.
HABITAT
Open country as mixed farmland, moorland, steppe, but also open woodland. In introduced areas habitats can be variable, including pampas, sand dunes, marshes, and alpine grassland.
BEHAVIOR
Solitary, but may aggregate in groups when feeding; males fight around females in estrous.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Diet varies with mostly grass in the summer and can include shrubs in the winter, but on agricultural land crops dominates.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Males and females are promiscuous. Females give birth to two to four litters per year with a mean litter size of one to four.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Common; not threatened.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
Important game species that may damage crops.
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