COMMON HARE. 



RODENTIA. 



331 



LEPORID^. 



Genus, Lepus (Linnaeus). 



Generic Character. — Hind-legs and ears long; tail short, tvirned up. 

 Grindiug-teetli §:f, with flat crowns, the folds of enamel transverse; incisors 

 grooved, four in upper jaw, two in front, and two smaU immediately behind 

 them. 



COMMON HARE. 



Lepus timidus. (Linn.) 



Specific Character, — Upper parts and flanks tawny grey, more or less mixed 

 with reddish, purer grey in winter; belly white; tail nearly as long as the 

 head, black above, white beneath ; ears longer than the head, black at the 

 tips. First upper grinder with a single internal angle. 



Lepus timidus, Linn^jdus, Syst. Nat. I. 77. 

 , , ewropaius, Pallas, Nov. Spec. Grlir. 30. 



The genus to which this animal belongs is one of the 

 most natural in the whole of the Rodentia. It is charac- 

 terized by numerous striking and well-marked peculiar- 

 ities. The incisive teeth are numerically different from 

 those of all the rest of the order ; in addition to the two 

 long, curved, chisel-shaped teeth above and below, there 

 are added in the upper jaw two smaller ones, placed im- 



