The Running Hare: The Secret Life of Farmland

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The blood of a freshly killed hare can be collected for consumption in a stew or casserole in a cooking process known as jugging. First the entrails are removed from the hare carcass before it is hung in a larder by its hind legs, which causes blood to accumulate in the chest cavity. One method of preserving the blood after draining it from the hare (since the hare is usually hung for a week or more) is to mix it with red wine vinegar to prevent coagulation, and then to store it in a freezer. [18] [19] a b c d e f g h i j k l Chapman, Joseph A.; Flux, John E. C. (1990). Rabbits, Hares and Pikas: Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. IUCN. pp.62, 76–78. ISBN 978-2-8317-0019-9. a b c d e f g h i j k l m Naughton, D. (2012). The Natural History of Canadian Mammals. University of Toronto Press. pp.235–238. ISBN 978-1-4426-4483-0. Despite their similar appearances, hares and rabbits are not genetically compatible. Too much time has passed on an evolutionary scale since they shared a “last common ancestor” from which both lineages split off. They also have a different number of chromosomes, which makes them completely incompatible. To understand why this is the case, just consider this fact. A species is typically defined as a discrete breeding population capable of producing viable offspring with each other. By comparison, hares and rabbits occupy entirely different genera. It would be the difference between, say, a domesticated cat and a tiger. If disturbed, it lies perfectly still, hoping to escape notice. If an enemy comes too near, however, the hare leaps up and runs away at speed, tail held downwards. It is built for speed, with its long hind legs and sleek body, and can reach 35 miles an hour! Most pursuers are outrun and the hare also outwits them by swerving and running in zig-zag fashion.

There are about 40 species of hares in the world. They are divided into three different genera: Lepus, Caprolagus, and Pronolagus. Below are 32 types of hares: Holly, A.J.F. & Greenwood, P.J. (1984). "The myth of the mad March hare". Nature. 309 (5968): 549–550. Bibcode: 1984Natur.309..549H. doi: 10.1038/309549a0. PMID 6539424. S2CID 4275486.Another great example of celebration of the hare is the Easter Bunny who represents the starting of spring, which is essentially a celebration of fertility, rebirth and reproduction.View all 104 animals that start with H Cladogenetic analysis suggests that European hares survived the last glacial period during the Pleistocene via refugia in southern Europe ( Italian peninsula and Balkans) and Asia Minor. Subsequent colonisations of Central Europe appear to have been initiated by human-caused environmental changes. [13] Genetic diversity in current populations is high with no signs of inbreeding. Gene flow appears to be biased towards males, but overall populations are matrilineally structured. There appears to be a particularly large degree of genetic diversity in hares in the North Rhine-Westphalia region of Germany. It is however possible that restricted gene flow could reduce genetic diversity within populations that become isolated. [14] Edwards, P. J., M. R. Fletcher, and P. Berny. Review of the factors affecting the decline of the European brown hare, Lepus europaeus (Pallas, 1778) and the use of wildlife incident data to evaluate the significance of paraquat. Agriculture, ecosystems & environment 79.2-3 (2000): 95-103. [3] The mountain hare is native to the Highlands of Scotland but has been introduced to other parts of the UK including the Peak District and on some Scottish Islands including Hoy (Orkney), Mainland (Shetland), Mull and Skye. The hare’s front teeth never stop growing throughout its life. The animal must grind the teeth down by chewing on grass.

Hoffman, R.S.; Smith, A.T. (2005). "Genus Lepus". In Wilson, D.E.; Reeder, D.M (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rded.). Johns Hopkins University Press. pp.195–205. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494. Gary L. Benton. "Vitamins, Minerals, and Survival". Preparedness and Self-Reliance. Archived from the original on 2015-03-15 . Retrieved 2017-10-30. Tom Jaine. "A Glossary of Cookery and other Terms". The History of English Cookery. Prospect Books.

Hares have assumed a side role during Christianity’s most important celebration. It is true that eggs were painted at Easter long before the Osterhase – literally, the Easter hare – crossed the North Sea from Protestant districts of Germany, but in its own country, children were already alert for this magical animal that hid eggs in herb gardens. Oddly, the Leicestershire village of Hallaton independently acquired an ancient hare-related tradition of its own: what it calls a hare pie – which never contained any hare – was flung to a riotous crowd as an annual scramble on Easter Monday. The hare has traditionally been a common source of food for people, and they are still among the most hunted animals today. Most of this hunting is responsibly done. However, an even greater threat is habitat loss and fragmentation, which has caused numbers to decline around the world. Broekhuizen, S.; Maaskamp, F. (1980). "Behaviour of does and leverets of the European hare ( Lepus europaeus) while nursing". Journal of Zoology. 191 (4): 487–501. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-7998.1980.tb01480.x.

Wherever it’s found, these animals prefer to inhabit open plains such as meadows, grasslands, deserts, tundra, and savannas. Although this sometimes exposes them to predators, their remarkable speed often allows them to get away even in relatively flatlands. If they need to hide, then hares will conceal themselves in the grass, shrubs, or hollows. Only a few species live in more forested regions. Diet Although they may not look it, hares are physically remarkable creatures with a finely developed sense of hearing, smell, and vision. Their wide angle of view allows them to detect predators coming from anywhere around them except for a small blind spot in front of their noses. They also produce pheromones from scent glands, which might play a role in mating. Some species are capable of short bursts of speed between 40 and 50 MPH and more consistent speeds of around 30 MPH. Thanks to their powerful hind limbs, they can leap 10 feet in the air. They are also excellent swimmers that can traverse rivers and large bodies of water without a problem. Droppings: Brown hare often leave droppings on bare ground, farmland and edges of grassland. They are larger and more flattened than the rabbit (1.5cm-2cm in diameter). They can vary, depending on the diet. Colour: greenish brown. Smell: sweet, like a damp digestive biscuit with a hint of mown hay. Natasha E. McGowan, Neal McDermott, Richard Stone, Liam Lysaght, S. Karina Dingerkus, Anthony Caravaggi, Ian Kerr, Neil Reid, National Hare Survey & Population Assessment 2017-2019, [report], National Parks and Wildlife Service. Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, 2019-11, Irish wildlife manuals, No.113, 2019 [7]

Why do hares box?

Fearnley-Whittingstall, H. "Recipes using hare". British Broadcasting Corporation . Retrieved 31 August 2016. Learn more about this elusive and fascinating species in our expert hare guide, including the types of species of hare found in the UK, habitat, breeding and the best places to see them in the wild. What species of hare are found in the UK?

Taxonomy and genetics [ edit ] The Granada hare ( Lepus granatensis) was once considered a subspecies of the European hare In Northern Europe, Easter imagery often involves hares or rabbits. Citing folk Easter customs in Leicestershire, England, where "the profits of the land called Harecrop Leys were applied to providing a meal which was thrown on the ground at the 'Hare-pie Bank'", the 19th-century scholar Charles Isaac Elton proposed a possible connection between these customs and the worship of Ēostre. [49] In his 19th-century study of the hare in folk custom and mythology, Charles J. Billson cites folk customs involving the hare around Easter in Northern Europe, and argues that the hare was probably a sacred animal in prehistoric Britain's festival of springtime. [50] Observation of the hare's springtime mating behaviour led to the popular English idiom " mad as a March hare", [48] with similar phrases from the sixteenth century writings of John Skelton and Sir Thomas More onwards. [51] The mad hare reappears in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, in which Alice participates in a crazy tea-party with the March Hare and the Hatter. [52] Sir John Tenniel's March Hare with Alice, the Dormouse, and the Hatter from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, 1865 Kane, Eloise C. Beyond the Pale: the historical archaeology of hare hunting, 1603-1831. Diss. University of Bristol, 2021. [8] Schnurr, D. L.; Thomas, V. G. (1984). "Histochemical properties of locomotory muscles of European hares and cottontail rabbits". Canadian Journal of Zoology. 62 (11): 2157–2163. doi: 10.1139/z84-313. Avril, A.; Letty, J.; Léonard, Y.; Pontier, D. (2014). "Exploration forays in juvenile European hares ( Lepus europaeus): dispersal preludes or hunting-induced troubles?". BMC Ecology. 14: 16. doi: 10.1186/1472-6785-14-6. PMC 3943402. PMID 24568541.a b c d " Lepus europaeus European hare". Animal Diversity. University of Michigan . Retrieved 11 May 2011. Bonino, N. A.; Cossios, D.; Menegheti, J. (2010). "Dispersal of the European hare, Lepus europaeus in South America" (PDF). Folia Zoologica. 59 (1): 9–15. doi: 10.25225/fozo.v59.i1.a3.2010. S2CID 4675498. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-09-17 . Retrieved 2016-09-16. Hare hunting is less common and less well-known than fox hunting. However, it still occurs across the UK every week. Hare hunting is distinct from coursing in its use of scent hounds such as beagles and harriers; coursing uses sight hounds such as greyhounds and salukis. So what is hare hunting and how is it prevented? These solitary animals tend to form in small pairs or family units called a drove. The only time they will congregate among other hares is to find an appropriate mate. Unlike rabbits, they tend to live exclusively above ground. If they need to seek out safety, then they will usually hide in grasses or shrubs. Lindstrom, Eric R.; Andren, Henrik; Angelstam, Per; Cederlund, Goran; Hornfeldt, Birger; Jaderberg, Lars; Lemnell, Per-Arne; Martinsson, Berit; Skold, Kent; Swenson, John E. (1992). "Disease reveals the predator: sarcoptic mange, red fox predation and prey populations". Ecology. 75 (4): 1042–1049. doi: 10.2307/1939428. JSTOR 1939428.