Splitting Hares…and Rabbits

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By Linda | March 23, 2008

This being Easter, I thought it an appropriate time to explain the differences between two commonly confused species that are really very different; Rabbits and Hares.

The differences between the two species become apparent from the time they are born. Firstly, baby rabbits are called kittens, while baby hares are called leverets. Rabbits are born completely helpless, naked and blind. Hares are born fully furred, able to see and evade predators. The mother hare leaves her leverets on the bare ground usually within an hour of giving birth. A rabbit mother provides much more care and protection to her kittens, lining her nest with grass, bark and soft stems and overlaying it with a layer of fur plucked from her own body. When the mother rabbit leaves the nest, she covers the kittens with more fur and plant materials to keep them warm and hidden from enemies.

Hares are generally larger than rabbits, and have longer hind legs and longer ears with characteristic black markings. The skulls of rabbits and hares are also different. A rabbit’s fur coat remains the same color year-round, while a hare’s can change color from grayish brown in summer to white in winter.

Rabbits usually live in burrows or tunnels in the ground, where they prefer to stay during daylight hours. Hares on the other hand, always stay on the surface among plants and usually try to escape enemies by running.

Rabbits and hares even eat differently. Rabbits forage on soft stems, grasses and vegetables, while hares prefer hard foods such as bark, small twigs, shoots and buds.