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ears and hind legs than the rabbits, and longer ears, with characteristic black markings. The rabbits and hares, though different in many respects do share many commonalities. Both the mammals moult their hair twice a year, in autumn and in spring, which will be replaced with another new coat of fur. Rabbits and hares are nocturnal animals. They are most active from the time that falls between dusk and dawn. They keep low in the daytime. Rabbits usually live in burrows or tunnels in the ground, where they prefer to stay during daylight hours. They try to keep hidden. Hares, on the other hand, always stay on the surface among plants and usually try to escape enemies by running. Rabbits move in groups. There exists competition between the male rabbits within a group to claim dominance. This is how they try to win over their female counterparts and the emergent victor mates with most of the females in the group. The hares on the other hand are solitary animals that live by themselves. The only time they group up is for mating. The hares are a peaceful group since there is no ' infighting ' among the hares for mates. The skulls of rabbits and hares are also different. Rabbits ' fur coats remain the same colour year round, while hares change during the year. Rabbits and hares have different diets. Rabbits prefer soft stems, grass or vegetables, while hares eat more hard food, such as bark and rind, buds, small twigs and shoots. Ahareisawildanimal, while rabbits are domesticated and are grown as pets or for slaughter.
In Gauteng you might come across the following hares and rabbits: Cape or Desert Hare( Lepus capensis), Jameson ' s Red Rock Rabbit( Pronolagus randensis), Scrub or Savannah Hare( Lepus saxatilis) and Smith ' s Red Rock Rabbit( Pronolagus rupestris). Some plot dwellers refer to their hares as Springhares or Springhaas. However it turns out that the Springhare
Jameson’ s Red Rock Rabbit
ON THE PLOT
( Pedetes capensis) is not even a hare – it is actually a species of rodent, which resembles a kangaroo. So what we see at night, raiding the veggie patch or being set up by the dogs and zigzagging across a field at great speed, is most likely a Scrub Hare.
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