LEPUS VARIABILIS. 127 



Lepiis variabilis. 



Lepus variabilis, Desm. Mamm. Sp. 5G1 ; Bell, Brit. Quad. ; Water- 

 house, Rodentia, p. 51. 

 Blue Hare of Scotland. Irish Hare, 



Description. — Ears shorter than the head, or sometimes 

 about equaling it in length, with a small distinct black 

 patch at the tips ; tail shorter than in the L. timidus, and 

 'without the distinct black patch on the upper surface. 

 The general hue of the fur on the uj^per parts is brown, 

 obscurely tinted with rufous, finely penciled with black 

 and rufous-yellow ; throat and under parts white ; tail 

 white, -s^dth more or less dark on the upper surface. This 

 is the summer attire ; but iu winter, in most of the countries 

 where it is found, it becomes pure white, excepting the 

 tips of the ears, which always remain black, and very fre- 

 quently their lower parts and the top of the head retain 

 their summer hue. The Irish variety, being the only Hare 

 found in that island, is of a richer and more rufous colour 

 on the upper parts, the exposed ends of the haii's being 

 either black or rufous, and the downy fur has also a redder 

 tinge ; the chin is greyish white ; the chest and throat 

 grey ; the inside of the legs and parts beneath white ; 

 hind-legs mottled with white and rufous. 



The length of head and body varies from 20 inches to 

 25 inches ; from tip of nose to root of ears, from 3 inches 

 9 lines to 4 inches 3 Hues ; ears from 3 inches 5 hues to 

 4 inches 3 lines. 



The Varjdng Hare inhabits Scotland, Cumberland, and 

 Ireland, the whole of Norway and Sweden, the north and 

 centre of Russia, and all Siberia to Kamtschatka. In Livonia 

 it does not become white on the upper parts of the body. 

 In Ireland, although not uncommon, with the greater part 

 of the body, or even with the entii^e body white, yet this 



