Granada hare range (red - native, pink - introduced, violet - origin uncertain)
TheGranada hare (Lepus granatensis), also known as theIberian hare (Spanish:liebre Ibérica), is aspecies ofhare that isendemic to theIberian Peninsula and the island ofMallorca. A small species compared to other European hares,[2] it has long been hunted as an importantgame species.[3]
Lepus granatensis gallaecius described byGerrit Smith Miller Jr. in 1907 was a male adult hare collected in theProvince of A Coruña.[5] This subspecies with a darker coat occurs in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, inGalicia.[6]
Lepus granatensis solisi, also called the Majorcan hare, is native toMajorca andIbiza in theBalearic Islands. This subspecies was described by biologists Fernando Palacios Arribas and José Fernández López in 1992, who noted its overall smaller size and differing dental morphology from the nominate subspecies.[7] It is considered either critically endangered by some zoologists[8] or extinct by the IUCN.[1]
The Granada hare has been noted as having high genetic diversity.[9]
The Granada hare is a hare of average adult weight 2–2.6 kilograms (4.4–5.7 lb) with distinctive reddish outer legs and a clear contrast between the gray-brown fur of its back and the white of its underside and inner legs. This white colouration travels to the tips of the toes. It is smaller than thebroom hares (L. castroviejoi) andEuropean hares (L. europaeus) that also occupy the Iberian peninsula, having a head and body length of 44.5 to 47.3 centimetres (17.5 to 18.6 in), hind foot length of 11.66 to 12.74 cm (4.59 to 5.02 in), and ear length of 9.25 to 10.27 cm (3.64 to 4.04 in).[2] The species has some degree ofsexual dimorphism, with females being heavier on average when compared to males.[6]
^Palomo, L. J. & J. Gisbert, ed. (2002).Atlas de los mamíferos terrestres de España. Madrid: OAPN.
^Alves, Paulo C.; Branco, Madalena; Matias, Osório; Ferrand, Nuno (1 April 2000). "New Genetic Variation in European Hares, Lepus granatensis and L. europaeus".Biochemical Genetics.38 (3):87–96.doi:10.1023/A:1002715913943.ISSN1573-4927.PMID11100268.
^Farfán, Miguel A.; Vargas, Juan M.; Real, Raimundo; Palomo, Luis J.; Duarte, Jesús (1 September 2004). "Population parameters and reproductive biology of the Iberian hareLepus granatensis in southern Iberia".Acta Theriologica.49 (3):319–335.doi:10.1007/BF03192531.ISSN2190-3743.
^Alzaga, V.; Vicente, J.; Villanua, D.; Acevedo, P.; Casas, F.; Gortazar, C. (1 March 2008). "Body condition and parasite intensity correlates with escape capacity in Iberian hares (Lepus granatensis)".Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology.62 (5):769–775.Bibcode:2008BEcoS..62..769A.doi:10.1007/s00265-007-0502-3.hdl:10481/100906.ISSN1432-0762.
