If you’re walking near open grassland or farmland in coming weeks keep your eyes peeled and you may be lucky to catch more than a fleeting glimpse; you may even spot them ‘boxing’.

Spring is prime time for seeing brown hares who indulge in some dramatic high speed chases and what appear to be fist fights but are actually a courtship of sorts.

Last week I was walking the dog along a bridleway over some farmland not far from where I live. As I glanced to my left across a huge three-hundred-acre farm field some sudden movement caught my eye: not one, not two, not three, but four hares all seemingly dashing about. It was mayhem. I paused to see how things unfolded. One gave up and disappeared down the hill. While another two continued to pursue the fourth (presumably the female). Eventually another chaser left the game, and the remaining pair also disappeared down the hill towards the small woodland bordering the field. Outcome unknown.

As well as being a favourite of mine, hares have been important to many cultures around the world for a very long time – from the Hare in the Moon of Chinese mythology to the Egyptian hieroglyph for ‘existence’. 

Elusive and endearing, they were once a common sight but have decreased by up to 80 per cent in the last century, due to habitat loss, hunting and changes in farming practices. Avid local photographer Harj Singh from our Staffordshire Wildlife Photography Facebook group recently captured the wonderful trail camera footage of one which is shown above, giving us a glimpse into their behaviour (aside from boxing and running).

Hares are usually solitary but spring is mating season and the vegetation is short so there’s a better chance of seeing one. Really lucky hare-searchers may spot more and might be fortunate enough to see some sparring. Contrary to popular belief the ‘boxing’ isn’t two males fighting over a female; it’s actually a female fighting off an amorous male. 

Hares are found across Staffordshire, preferring open habitats like arable fields and meadows but also found in small copses and hedgerows. Most are found where there’s a mosaic of smaller fields and where crop varieties are grown in rotation with grassland. 

If you’re lucky enough to see hares boxing, you’ll see how they differ from rabbits. Hares are much bigger – just look at those powerful hind legs in the photos.  These allow them to run up to a staggering 45 mile per hour when evading predators, as well as leap and bound in a way that rabbits just can't. Their ears are also much different to rabbits – they’re about 10cm long and are tipped with black!

They’re not just fast, sleek and beautiful. One of their most amazing features is the ability to gestate embryos of different ages. It’s called superfoetation and it means that a female can be fertilised when she’s already pregnant. Females have between one and four litters per season with one to four young (leverets) each time. Because they live above ground, leverets are born with fur and with their eyes open - they’re independent after only three weeks.  They’re at high risk from predators – foxes, stoats, buzzards and owls – so each leveret is moved into its own depression in the ground, called a form. To avoid bringing attention to their young, females only nurse them for just a few minutes each day, they're fully independent after only three weeks.