Hi - does anyone know of any Zoo in Europe that keeps the European/Brown Hare - Lepus europaeus ? I would like to take some photos. Thanks
Hi! Welcome to ZooChat! You can find animals in European zoos on this site: ZootierlisteHomepage The link will take you straight to holdings for L. europaeus. There aren't many, but a couple are in the UK. I recommend the British Wildlife Centre.
Does the BWC actually keep hares? Not to my previous knowledge, but I haven't there in years. I do recall a collection successfully keeping hares on display in Europe, but where or when I do not recall. Sometimes young hares are brought into captivity, possibly with the idea of starting a display, but upon maturity go ballistic presumably due to human proximity. Has always stumped me why wild rabbits were domesticated but other lagomorphs are not easy to keep in captivity. Maybe it is a 'hares' versus 'rabbit' thing?
Certainly did the only time I've visited, in 2010: http://www.zoochat.com/1334/brown-hare-british-wildlife-centre-14-a-137223/
I have always thought they would be an interesting animals to keep as we have a lot of wild ones in Australia. In captivity it would be easier to study their behavior. I raised a young one years ago and he turned vicious when about half grown and would jump at me and bite. I released him and he only hung around a couple of days. I just need to build a yard big enough and secure and I could try again.
