Mr. J. E. Harting on Forest Animals. 89
hares at birth are clothed with fur and have their eyes
open. Rabbits produce their young underground; hares
construct "a form" above ground. To this general rule,
however, exceptions have been noted. Rabbits have been
known to breed above ground,* and hares have been ob-
served to burrow.† You may generally tell whether turnips
have been nibbled by hares or rabbits by the difference in
their mode of attacking the root. A hare will bite off the
peel and leave it on the ground; a rabbit will eat peel
and all. ‡
Hares vary much in weight, and occasionally in colour.
The average weight may be between 7lbs. and 8lbs., but I
have notes of three, shot in Lincolnshire, in the autumn of
1877, which weighed respectively 11lbs. 3oz., 11lbs. 12oz.,
and 111bs. 3oz. § With regard to variation in colour, I have
notes of the capture of three black hares, several albinos,
and one parti-coloured one, in different parts of the country.
Black and sandy-coloured rabbits are not very un-
common, but an albino rabbit, truly wild, is, I think, not
often met with.
Both hares and rabbits can swim well, but it generally
requires the persuasion of the sportsman or his dog to
make them take the water. I have only once seen a hare
swim voluntarily, and then the stream crossed was not a
wide one.
The appearance of the Squirrel must be so familiar to
everyone that I need not offer any description, but will
confine myself to a few remarks on its habits.
We have seen how one Rodent lives underground, and
another makes its "form" upon the surface. We have
here a case of one which constructs its nest in a tree, some-
times in a hole, sometimes in a fork between two branches.
This nest is made of moss, leaves, and long dry grass, and
makes a soft cradle for the young ones, which are born
* See The Field, December 2nd and 16th, 1876.
† Annals and Mag. Nat. Hist., vol. v., p. 262.
‡ The Zoologist, 1878, p. 100.
§ The Field, November 10th, 1877.