The Hare (also known as Wild Rabbit and Brown Hare) is herbivorous mammal from Leporids kind that is widespread in Bulgaria.
The length of its body reaches 64-68 cm and weighs between 4 and 6 kg and some individuals is up to 7 kg. Ears of Hare long between 10 and 14 centimeters. There is a queue which is wedge-shaped with a length of 7 to 14 cm and covered with a dark, sometimes black hair in its upper part. The fur on the back of Hare is darker than the hips and belly is white.
During the summer, the hare has darker fur than in winter as in different individuals can vary from gray, brown, red, dark ocher, with the head, tips of ears and back are darker. The coat is changed twice - in the fall and in the spring and both times the change lasts almost two months.
Hind paws of a Hare that helps to jump quickly because that jumping is his type of running, are long 13 to 18 cm. The eyes of the hare are brownish-orange or brick-red color.
During the summer, the Rabbit prefers to eat mainly grasses, so can be found mostly in open areas like lawns and meadows, but always nearby should have forest or shrub in which to hide from danger. European Hare can eat almost all parts of plants, including their roots.
During the summer, the Hare eats seeds of various plants. Thus through excrement he contributes and spreads many plant kinds, since not all seeds fail to digest in the stomach.
Also eating different cereals cultivated by man, so often starts an argument with it.
During winter times, the Hare eats dry grass, different kinds of seeds, remains of various vegetable crops which dug out of the snow.If there is nothing else to eat around, the Hare eats tree bark. He likes to eat the bark of maple, oak, of hazelnuts, and also of wild apples and wild pears.
Sometimes hare uses abandoned holes of foxes or badgers, but never held there for a long time for security reasons.
In winter the European Hare sleeps on the snow in a place that is sheltered. Rarely, if the winter is too cold and there is a lot of snow hare can make tunnels in the snow, which can reach up to 2 meters in length and can make a nest in the hay also.
The Hare can run at very high speed up to 60-70 km / h in a straight line.
To confuse his pursuers, the Rabbit may deliberately make several rounds, and thus predators or the hunting dogs do not know exactly where he went. Most often he resorted to this tactic in winter when the snow left many circles made by its steps.
Wild Rabbits proliferates to 4 times per year, such as the number of juveniles in the first (March) and the last litter is usually 2-3, and in the summer litters of 3 to 5, and more. Gestation lasts 45-48 days. Juveniles are born with their eyes open and can eat from day one. They are born fully furred and even an hour after birth they can run, but after a month began independent life.
The female cares for the offspring by feeding them no more frequently than once a day. Sometimes the mother feed them every three or four days. Due to the high fat content of the milk of the female Hare, the juvenile rabbits survive and this quite irregular diet. Sometimes a female Hare to adopt small bunnies if their mother was killed.
Unfortunately, the European Hare is one of the most frequently hunted by man occupants of the Bulgarian nature.
