Rabbits and Hares

I

Introduction

Rabbits and Hares, common name for certain small mammals of the Leporidae family. Although the names “rabbit” and “hare” are sometimes used interchangeably, in zoological terms the species called rabbits are characterized by the helplessness of their offspring (which are born naked and blind) and by their gregarious habit of living in colonies in underground burrows. (The exception is the cottontail of North America, which does not dig burrows; its nest is on the surface, usually in dense vegetation, and it is not social.) Species designated zoologically as hares are born with fur and open eyes, and the adults merely construct a simple nest and rarely live socially. Furthermore, a typical hare is larger than a rabbit, and has longer ears with characteristic black markings. The rabbit becomes sexually mature at six months, the hare at one year or, in some cases, two years. To a zoologist, the skulls of rabbits and hares are distinctly different.

There are about 50 species of rabbits and hares distributed throughout the world with native species everywhere except Oceania, but they have many common characteristics. Both rabbits and hares typically breed prolifically, bearing four to eight litters a year (with three to eight young in each litter), have a period of gestation lasting about a month, and have a lifespan of up to about ten years. These animals, which weigh from about 1 to 5 kg (2 to 11 lb) and attain a length of about 30 to 60 cm (12 to 24 in), feed usually at night, mainly on herbs, tree bark, and vegetables. They prefer to live in regions where the soil is loose and dry and where shrubs offer shelter. Although rabbits and hares are valued as game by hunters, as food, and for their fur, they are often pests to farmers whose trees and crops they destroy. These lagomorphs (the zoological term for the animal group that encompasses hares, pikas, and rabbits) have large front teeth and hind legs best adapted for running. They have a very good sense of smell, sight, and hearing.

II

Rabbits

Wild rabbits have greyish or brownish fur, but pet rabbits vary considerably in colour. In some parts of the world, a rabbit is called a cony—the name sometimes given commercially to rabbit fur. The common European and north African rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) often lives in a group within a burrow system called a warren. It is native to Spain and Portugal but has been introduced by sailors and settlers throughout the world, principally as a source of food—there were no rabbits in Australasia until Europeans took them there. The remarkable spread of this animal species is one of the best (or worst) examples of colonization brought about by human beings, and an instructive example of how human intervention can upset an existing ecosystem. Rabbits have been introduced to South America, Java, Australia, New Zealand, and various oceanic islands around the world. A significant instance of how fast rabbits can spread is shown by the present abundance of rabbits in Australia and New Zealand. Rabbits were first introduced into Australia in the late 19th century and into New Zealand in about 1860. They soon multiplied so rapidly that rabbit control became a serious problem. In Australia a virus deadly only to true rabbits was developed, and in 1951 decimation of the rabbit population began through the artificial promotion of this virus infection, known as myxomatosis. The project met with success only in areas with sufficient water to serve as breeding grounds for mosquitoes, which transmit the virus. However, the disease spread to Europe, killing rabbits in Great Britain, Belgium, and France, where the animal serves useful purposes.

The chief wild rabbit of North America is the cottontail. There are many other wild species of rabbit including the very endangered riverine rabbit, of which fewer than 250 breeding pairs remain. It is confined to the vegetation around seasonal rivers in the Karoo Desert in South Africa where numbers decline due to loss of habitat, trapping, and its slow reproduction. In grazing and manuring the land this rabbit helps to maintain the riparian ecosystem that humans also depend upon.

III

Hares

Hares are usually brownish-grey with a white belly. They more typically jump rather than run. The nest they build is called a form, and the young (leverets) have to fend for themselves at a much younger age than the protected offspring of rabbits.

The snowshoe hare is distributed widely throughout North America. In winter it is pure white except for black ear tips, and in summer it is reddish-brown. The animals known as jackrabbits in North America are really hares.

IV

Domestic Rabbits

Many varieties of the domesticated rabbit are derived from a wild rabbit native to Europe and Africa. Some varieties are Angora, Belgian, Dutch, Himalayan, lop, Siberian, Patagonian, silver-tip, Polish, and Flemish. The domesticated rabbit has extremely diverse characteristics, varying in colour through every grade, shade, and mixture, from pure white to all black; in coat from very short to long, silky hair capable of being woven; and in style of ears from the prick ear—erect, small, and almost as stiff as metal—to the floppy, broad, soft-skinned lopped ear, which hangs to the ground. Domestic rabbits warn one another of danger by thumping on the ground with their hind feet. They are bred as pets, for genetic studies, for laboratory experimentation, and for their meat and furs; domestic rabbits' furs are sold under the trade names of arctic seal, clipped seal, cony, and lapin.

Scientific classification: Rabbits and hares belong to the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha. The wild rabbit of Europe and Africa is classified as Oryctolagus cuniculus. The riverine rabbit is classified as Bunolagus monticularis. The common hare is Lepus europaeus. Cottontails are classified in the genus Sylvilagus. The snowshoe hare is classified as Lepus americanus.