Brown Hare Vision (or lack of it)

Brown hares are typically a creature of open countryside, which provides small amounts of cover i.e. tall vegetation, hedgerow bases and woodland edge, where forms can be created. The species is most numerous on arable agricultural land, particularly in this region. However they certainly exist in good numbers on pasture, in the North York Moors particularly where heather is flanked by improved cattle pasture, and in most of the valleys. They also like the vegetative regeneration which occurs after heather burning. Although a clear avoidance of closely cropped sheep pasture occurs, unless interspersed with cover.

A walk along such habitat produced the usual brown hares, which probably benefit from the red fox control on the moor, and usually occur in good populations, even on top of the moor. One such animal (below) had really well developed cataracts in each eye. Brown hares often forage well into the night which would make this animal highly vulnerable to foxes and possibly even badgers, when both are more active and the hares eye is likely to be completely blind. The red fox is the most significant predator of brown hares in Europe, to the extent that they can be a limiting factor on population growth. Up to 80% of leverets (young hares) can be predated in some populations. Brown hares usually have 360 degree vision, although in my experience their head-on vision appears to be quite weak. This hare would appear to be almost completely blind, however as you would expect they have exceptional hearing. Despite the local gamekeepers controlling foxes, several scats were quickly found without much looking, so it will be interesting to see how long this distinctive individual remains in the area.