Rabbits & Hares

The Lagomorpha (from the Latin meaning “having the form of the hare”) is the order of mammals containing the rabbits, hares and pika. Globally, there are about 90 lagomorph species, split roughly evenly between the three groups. Britain is host to three members of the Leporidae family: the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus); the brown hare (Lepus europaeus); and the mountain hare (Lepus timidus), sometimes also called the Irish or blue hare. Brown hares and rabbits are both introduced species in Britain, with the mountain hare being our only native lagomorph.