Lepus capensis

• Overview
• Interesting Facts
• Common Names
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Overview

Interesting Facts

Common Names

Click on the language to view common names.

Description

Habitat

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 5,271 meters (0 to 17,293 feet).[1]

Ecology: The following information applies to L. capensis on the Arabian Peninsula. This species breeds all year round , with one or two offspring in each litter . L. capensis prefers shrubs , rather than grasses, to shelter under in summer. However, whether this is a limiting factor or not is not known. L. capensis has experienced habitat loss since the 1950's resulting from urbanization, overgrazing, agricultural encroachment and infrastructure related to tourism (Drew et al. 2004). It has been noted that pastureland that has been overgrazed by domestic livestock is favored (Flux and Angermann 1990).

In Africa, it is commonly associated with open habitats (Boitani et al. 1999). Reproduction varies according to location (Happold pers. comm. ). Equatorial expanses have a year-round breeding season , with up to eight litters per year and 1.3-2.0 young per litter (Flux 1981). In Kenya, L. capensis produces six to eight litters per year with a mean litter size of 1.5 (Happold pers. comm. ). Hares at higher altitudes will have smaller litters than those at lower altitudes (Happold pers. comm.). Home range for this species varies, depending on the type of habitat in which it is found (Flux and Angermann 1990 ). There is little information available on the diet of L. capensis, but is presumed to vary according to habitat as well (Flux and Angermann 1990). (Ref. 282745).

List of Habitats:

•     3     Shrubland   
  
•     3.5     Shrubland - Subtropical/Tropical Dry   
  
•     3.8     Shrubland - Mediterranean-type Shrubby Vegetation   
  
•     4     Grassland   
  
•     4.5     Grassland - Subtropical/Tropical Dry   
  
•     8     Desert   
  
•     8.1     Desert - Hot   
  
•     8.2     Desert - Temperate   
  
•     14     Artificial/Terrestrial   
  
•     14.1     Artificial/Terrestrial - Arable Land   
  
•     14.2     Artificial/Terrestrial - Pastureland   
[more info]

Taxonomy

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

First described: Blackburn Révérend Thomas Further Notes on Australian Coleoptera, with Descriptions of New Genera and Species. XXXI. Transactions and Proceedings and Report of the Royal Society of South Australia, Adelaide 26 (2): 288-321., 1902.

Last scrutiny: 15-Aug-2007

Generally, the entire taxonomy of L. capensis throughout its range is unclear. Taxonomic review of the species is urgently needed; otherwise, it is possible that some forms may go extinct before they are formally identified.

Hoffmann and Smith (2005) restrict L. capensis to the South African distribution, citing no evidence of gene flow between the southern and northern ranges. A list of synonyms is provided based on four geographic locations (South Africa, East Africa, Arabia and Near East, and northwest Africa), which are informal subdivisions of L. capensis sensu lato. The authors suggested that these four groups might represent distinct species. In the Near East and Arabia L. c. arabicus; in South Africa L. c. aquilo, L. c. carpi, L. c. granti; East Africa L. c. aegyptius, L. c. hawkeri, L. c. isabellinus, L. c. sinaiticus; and L. c. atlanticus, L. c. schulmbergeri, L. c. whitakeri in northwest Africa (Hoffmann and Smith 2005).

According to Harrison and Bates (1991) there are 8 subspecies in Arabia: L. c. syriacus (Syria, Lebanon, northern Israel); L. c. sinaiticus (southern Israel, Sinai); L. c. connori (east of the Euphrates in Iraq); L. c. arabicus (western Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Yemen); L. c. cheesmani (Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, Yemen, Oman); L. c. omanensis (UAE, Oman); L. c. atallahi (Bahrain, Qatar?); L. c. jefferyi (Masirah Island, Oman). The taxonomic status of L. c. jefferyi needs clarification, as it may represent a good species. Hares present in Qatar also require taxonomic investigation.

The taxonomic position of the Sardinian Hare is unresolved. Hoffmann and Smith (2005) include the Sardinian Hare as one of the unassigned synonyms L. mediterraneus Wagner, 1841 or typicus Hilzheimer, 1906, in L. granatensis. Analysis of the mtCR-1 sequence indicated that Sardinian Hares form a monophyletic clade with North African Hares (Scandura et al. 2007). A phylogenetic analysis of mtCR-1 sequences from Tunisian and Egyptian Hares characterized them as monophyletic and separate from L. capensis (Ben Slimen et al. 2006). However, a study of the nuclear gene pool of L. capensis, L. europaeus and the North African Hare indicated that the North African Hare as well as L. europaeus belong to L. capensis (Ben Slimen et al. 2005), supporting Petter's (1959, 1961) hypothesis of the inclusion of L. europaeus in capensis. Ben Slimen et al. (2008a) suggest that in a case such as the genus Lepus, where evolution is "rapid and to some extent reticulate ", species designation based solely on mtDNA is misleading without examination of the nuclear gene pool . Ben Slimen et al. (2008a) has shown that genetic differentiation between L. capensis and L. europaeus could be attributed to geographic distance rather than divergence . They speculate that gene flow may be occurring in the Near East where distributions meet resulting in the potential for intergraded populations. However, Ben Slimen et al. (2008b) propose that "a combined phylogenetic, phylogeographic, and population genetic approach,…, based on various nuclear and mitochondrial markers and including other biological characters, such as phenotypic and morphometric data ," is needed for conclusive evidence of a single species complex. In light of this continuing uncertainty regarding the taxonomic status of the Sardinian and North African Hares, both will remain included in capensis and L. europaeus retains its taxonomic status as a distinct species.

Many treatments indicate that the range of L. capensis extends into China, Mongolia and Russia; however, recognition of L. tibetanus and L. tolai as distinct species removes consideration of L. capensis as occurring in this region (Hoffmann and Smith 2005).[2].

Similar Species

Members of the genus Lepus

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 58 species and subspecies in this genus:

L. alleni (Antelope Jack Rabbit) · L. alleni alleni (Antelope Jack Rabbit) · L. americanus (Snowshoe Rabbit) · L. americanus americanus (Snowshoe Hare) · L. americanus klamathensis (Snowshoe Hare) · L. americanus seclusus (Bighorn Mountain Snowshoe Hare) · L. americanus tahoensis (Sierra Nevada Snowshoe Hare) · L. americanus washingtonii (Washington Snowshoe Hare) · L. arcticus (Arctic Hare) · L. arcticus arcticus (Arctic Hare) · L. brachyurus (Japanese Hare) · L. brachyurus brachyurus (Japanese Hare) · L. californica (Black-Tailed Jack Rabbit) · L. californicus (Black-Tailed Jack Rabbit) · L. californicus bennettii (Black-Tailed Jackrabbit) · L. californicus californicus (Black-Tailed Jack Rabbit) · L. callotis (Beautiful-Eared Jack Rabbit) · L. callotis callotis (Beautiful-Eared Jack Rabbit) · L. callotis gaillardi (White-Sided Jackrabbit) · L. capensis (European Hare) · L. capensis capensis (Brown Hare) · L. castroviejoi (Broom Hare) · L. comus (Yunnan Hare) · L. coreanus (Korean Hare) · L. corsicanus (APPENINE HARE) · L. europaeus (European Brown Hare) · L. fagani (Ethiopian Hare) · L. flavigularis (Tehuantepec Jack Rabbit) · L. granatensis (Iberian Hare) · L. granatensis granatensis (Granada Hare) · L. habessinicus (Abyssinian Hare) · L. hainanus (Chinese Pinyin) · L. insularis (Espiritu Santo Jackrabbit) · L. mandshuricus (Manchurian Hare) · L. microtis (African Savanna Hare) · L. nigricollis (Black-Napped Hare) · L. nigricollis nigricollis (Indian Hare) · L. oiostolus (Woolly Hare) · L. oiostolus oiostolus (Woolly Hare) · L. oistolus (Woolly Hare) · L. othus (Beringian Hare) · L. othus othus (Alaskan Hare) · L. peguensis (Siamese Hare) · L. saxatilis (Savannah Hare) · L. saxatilis saxatilis (Scrub Hare) · L. sinensis (Chinese Hare) · L. sinensis sinensis (Chinese Hare) · L. starcki (Ethiopian Highland Hare) · L. tibetanus (Desert Hare) · L. timidus (Eurasian Arctic Hare) · L. timidus timidus (Arctic Hare) · L. tolai (Tolai Hare) · L. townsendi (White-Tailed Jack Rabbit) · L. townsendii (White-Tailed Jack Rabbit) · L. townsendii campanius (White-Tailed Jackrabbit) · L. townsendii townsendii (Western White-Tailed Jackrabbit) · L. victoriae (African Savanna Hare) · L. yarkandensis (Yarkland Hare)

More Info

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Further Reading

• A history of British mammals / London: Gurney and Jackson, 1910-[1921]. url .
• A history of British mammals, by Gerald E. H. Barrett-Hamilton. .. With twenty-seven full-page plates in colour, fifty-four in black and white, and upwards of two hundred and fifty smaller illustrations, drawn by Edward A. Wilson London: Gurney and Jackson, 1910-1921. url p. 229.
• A study of the mammals of Iran: resulting from the Street Expedition of 1962-63 [by] Douglas M. Lay. 54 1967 [Chicago]Field Museum of Natural History, 1967. url fig. 22 , fig. 27 , fig. 29 , fig. 21 , p. 100, p. 101, p. 104, p. 105, p. 151, p. 154, p. 155, p. 54, p. 69, p. 70, p. 72, p. 75, p. 78, p. 85, p. 86, p. 91, p. 92, p. 93, p. 94, p. 96, p. 98.
• A survey of the mammals of Afghanistan, resulting from the 1965 Street Expedition (excluding bats) [by] Jerry D. Hassinger. 60 1973 [Chicago]Field Museum of Natural History, 1973. url p. 179, p. 36, p. 39, p. 40, p. ix.
• African Ixodoidea. l. Ticks of the Sudan... [Washington]1956. url p. 260, p. 378, p. 427, p. 442, p. 525, p. 612, p. 617, p. 674, p. 686.
• Annals of the South African Museum. Annale van die Suid-Afrikaanse Museum. Cape Town [etc., South African Museum, etc.] url p. 236, p. 238.
• Ardea. Amsterdam, etc., Nederlandse Ornithlogische Unie, etc. url p. 61.
• Biodiversity indicators for integrated environmental assessments at the regional and global level: feasibility study on data availability of six biodiversity indicators National Institute of Public Health and Environmental Protection (RIVM) url p. 14.
• Biosphere Reserves, Compilation 4, October 1986: programme on man and the biosphere (MAB) IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre url p. 167, p. 193, p. 23, p. 420, p. 591, p. 593.
• Bulletin - United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.];1877-1971. url , p. 164, p. 165, p. 168.
• Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History). London: BM(NH) url p. 226.
• Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College. 89 1942 Cambridge, Mass.: The Museum, 1863- url p. 153, p. 211, p. 273, p. 274, p. 275, index, p. [565]-763, page 565, p. 577, p. 584, p. 593, p. 595, p. 609, p. 628, p. 644, p. 647, p. 649, p. 660, p. 664, p. 676, p. 677, p. 700, p. 730, p. 756.
• Catalogue of Mammalia in the Indian Museum, Calcutta / by John Anderson, Superintendent of the Indian Museum. Calcutta, 1881-1891. url p. 119.
• Catalogue of mammalia in the Indian Museum, Calcutta, Calcutta, 1881-1891. url .
• Checklist of Palaearctic and Indian mammals 1758 to 1946 / by J.R. Ellerman and T.C.S. Morrison-Scott. London: BM(NH), 1966. url p. 420, p. 421, p. 422, p. 428, p. 429, p. 430, p. 431, p. 432, p. 433.
• Checklists for the CORINE Biotopes Programme and its application in the PHARE countries of Central and East Europe: including comparisons with relevant conventions and agreements on the conservation of European species and habitats EC url p. 14.
• Directory of Wetlands of International Importance. IUCN url p. 551, p. 770.
• Global Biodiversity: status of the Earth's living resources WCMC url p. 365.
• IUCN Directory of Afrotropical Protected Areas IUCN, UNEP url p. 1023, p. 189, p. 487, p. 496, p. 640.
• IUCN Directory of South Asian Protected Areas IUCN url p. 132, p. 287.
• Index generum mammalium: a list of the genera and families of mammals. By T. S. Palmer. .. Washington, Govt. Print. Off., 1904. url p. 373.
• Industrial reliance on biodiversity. WCMC Biodiversity Series 7 WCMC url p. 41.
• Introduction to the mammal survey of the 1965 Street Expedition to Afghanistan [by] Jerry D. Hassinger. 55 1968 [Chicago]Field Museum of Natural History, 1968. url p. 62.
• Late Pleistocene vertebrates from archaeological sites in the Plain of Kom Ombo, Upper Egypt / [Toronto: Royal Ontario Museum], 1972. url , p. 160, p. 43, p. 44.
• Medley of sport / J.M.M.B. Durham. London: Gibbings, 1910. url p. 129, p. 136, p. 191.
• Nature Reserves of the Himalaya and the Mountains of Central Asia IUCN url p. 22, p. 225, p. 279, p. 415, p. 466.
• North American fauna. Washington: Fish and Wildlife Service; for sale by the Supt. of Docs., U. S. Govt. Print. Off. url p. 373.
• Postilla. 1966 New Haven, Conn.: Peabody Museum of Natural History, [1950?]-c2004. url p. 36.
• Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. Washington, Biological Society of Washington url p. 35, p. 39, p. 39.
• Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales. Sydney, Linnean Society of New South Wales. url p. 127, p. 147.
• Proceedings of the United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.] url , p. 446, p. 468, p. 474, p. 475, p. 502, p. 583, p. 595, p. 596, p. 601, p. 602.
• Protected Landscapes: experience around the world. Prepared for the International Symposium on Protected Landscapes, Grange-over-Sands, England 5-10 October 1987 IUCN url p. 133.
• Readings in mammalogy / selected from the original literature and introduced with comments by J. Knox Jones, Jr., and Sydney Anderson. [Lawrence, Kans.]: Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas, 1970. url p. 366.
• Selected readings in mammalogy: selected from the original literature and introduced with comments / by J. Knox Jones, Jr., Sydney Anderson, and Robert S. Hoffmann. Lawrence, Kan.: Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas, 1976. url p. 386.
• Siphonaptera collected during the 1965 Street Expedition to Afghanistan [by] Robert E. Lewis. 64 1973 [Chicago]Field Museum of Natural History, 1973. url p. 15.
• South African mammals. A short manual for the use of field naturalists, sportsmen and travellers. London: H.F. & G. Witherby, 1920. url p. 107.
• South African mammals: a short manual for the use of field naturalists, sportsmen and travellers / Alwin Haagner; with numerous illustrations. London: H.F. & G. Witherby; 1920. url p. 107.
• South African mammals; a short manual for the use of field naturalists, sportsmen and travellers. London, H. F. & G. Witherby, 1920. url .
• Studies in neotropical mammalogy: essays in honor of Philip Hershkovitz / edited by Bruce D. Patterson, Robert M. Timm. 39 1987 Chicago: Field Museum of Natural History, 1987. url fig. 2 , p. 436, p. 441, p. 501.
• The Annals and magazine of natural history; zoology, botany, and geology being a continuation of the Annals combined with Loudon and Charlesworth's Magazine of Natural History. London, Taylor and Francis, Ltd. url p. 223, p. 268, p. 343, p. 344, p. 421, p. 421, p. 465, p. 642, p. 78.
• The IUCN Invertebrate Red Data Book IUCN url p. 322.
• The IUCN Mammal Red Data Book. Part 1: threatened mammalian taxa of the Americas and the Australasian zoogeographic region (excluding Cetacea) IUCN url p. 494, p. 494.
• The Marine Mammal Commission compendium of selected treaties, international agreements, and other relevant documents on marine resources, wildlife, and the environment / compiled by Richard L. Wallace. Washington, D.C.: The Commission; 1994 url p. 691.
• The animal kingdom, arranged according to its organization, serving as a foundation for the natural history of animals: and an introduction to comparative anatomy / Baron Cuvier. London, G. Henderson, 1834-37. url p. 137.
• The contemporary land mammals of Egypt (including Sinai) / Dale J. Osborn, Ibrahim Helmy. 5 1980 [Chicago]: Field Museum of Natural History, 1980. url fig. 31 , p. 53, p. 84, p. 87, p. 89, p. 90, p. iv, p. x, p. xv.
• The game animals of Africa, by R. Lydekker. London: R. Ward, limited, 1908. url p. 468, p. 468.
• The mammals of Africa: country lists. Draft document IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre, UNEP, WWF url .
• The mammals of South Africa / by W.L. Sclater. .. London: R.H. Porter, 1900-01. url , p. 94, p. 95, p. 97.
• The natural history of South Africa. .. London, Longmans, Green and Co., 1919-20. url .
• The sportsman in South Africa. The haunts, habits, description, and the pursuit of all game, both fur and feather, found south of the Zambesi (including the Cape colony, Transvaal, Bechuanaland, Natal, and Damaraland), at the prese London, The British and colonial publications co. [etc.]1892. url .
• Veröffentlichungen der Zoologischen Staatssammlung München. München: Die Staatssammlung, url p. 110, p. 193, p. 207, p. 219, p. 93.

Notes

Contributors

• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 10, 2012.
• Drew, C., O'Donovan, D., Simkins, G., Al Dosary, M., Al Khaldi, A.M., Mohammed, O.B., Al Nuaimi, A.S.M., Al Mutairi, M.S., Al Habhani, H.M., Sami Amr, Z., Qarqas, M. & Abu Baker, M.A. 2008. Lepus capensis. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloadedon 01February2012.
• IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. . Downloaded on January 28, 2012.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal December 07, 2007:

• Berkeley Natural History Museums, University of California Museum of Paleontology DiGIR provider
• European Environment Agency, EUNIS
• Field Museum, Mammal specimens
• Institute of Nature Conservation PAS, National System of Proetcted Areas
• Israel Nature and Parks Authority, Israel Nature and Parks Authority
• Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History, Vertebrate specimens
• Louisiana State University Museum of Natural Science, Mammal specimens
• Marine Science Institute, UCSB, Paleobiology Database
• Michigan State University Museum, Vertebrate specimens
• Museum of Texas Tech University
• , Mammal specimens
• OZCAM
• Provider, Online Zoological Collections of Australian Museums
• Royal Ontario Museum, Mammal specimens
• University of Alaska Museum of the North, University of Alaska Museum Mammal Collection
• University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
• , Mammal specimens
• University of Washington Burke Museum, Mammal Specimens

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 107247
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-727842
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 13837488
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 180117
• IUCN ID: 219151
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 130508

Footnotes

1. Mean = 358.110 meters (1,174.902 feet), Standard Deviation = 837.160 based on 615 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
2. Drew, C., O'Donovan, D., Simkins, G., Al Dosary, M., Al Khaldi, A.M., Mohammed, O.B., Al Nuaimi, A.S.M., Al Mutairi, M.S., Al Habhani, H.M., Sami Amr, Z., Qarqas, M. & Abu Baker, M.A. 2008. Lepus capensis. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 01 February 2012. [back]

©2004-2012 David Stang. All rights reserved.