Hares have a special place in Irish mythology

A hopper of ditches, a cutter of corn, and a brown little cow without any horns.

The life of the hare is quite a secretive affair; often the information we hear about hares, and the lives they live, is a strange mixture of fact and fiction. Noted in folklore for its swiftness, alertness and agility, the hare was also regarded as a fairy animal associated with deception and witchcraft.

There is a special thrill in seeing a hare; the hare has a bit of mystery, a bit of the supernatural about him. His world is only seen in glimpses or in heroic literary tales of fantastical achievements but thankfully, the hare is still to be seen in some fields around the Ox Mountains.

Mythology 

For centuries, we have respected, even feared, the hare because of its perceived powers of solitude and remoteness. Like the moon, which always changes places in the sky, hares were full of mystery and contradictions. The Celts believed that the goddess Eostre's favourite animal and accompanying spirit was the hare. It represented love, fertility and growth and was associated with the moon. A piece written for BBC Home in 2015, provides information on the hare as it is seen in various mythologies around the world.

The Celtic warrior Oisin hunted a hare and wounded it in the leg, forcing it to seek refuge in a clump of bushes. When Oisin followed it, he found a door leading into the ground and he eventually emerged into a huge hall where he found a beautiful young woman sitting on a throne bleeding from a wound in her leg. The transmigration of the soul is clearly seen in Celtic lore such as this.

In Africa, the hare was considered to be part of the moon. Seen on a clear night the full moon might, with a bit of imagination, contain the outline of a hare. Throughout Africa there is a myth that at the start of the world, the moon was so pleased with the earth that she wanted to give mankind the gift of immortality. The moon sent her companion, Hare, to pass on the message: 'Just as the moon dies and rises again so shall you.' 

But Hare confused the message and said instead: 'Just as the moon dies and perishes, so shall you.' Earth's people believed these words and became mortal. When the moon heard what Hare had done, she became so angry that she beat Hare with a stick and split his nose. 

Throughout Native American culture, the best-known mythical hero was Michabo or Great Manitou, the Great Hare. The tribes of western, eastern, northern and central North America all spoke of this beast as their common ancestor. The tribe which bore his name was looked up to with peculiar respect.

Splitting Hares 

There are a few different species of hare. Here in Ireland, there is the brown hare and the Irish hare. While they are similar, they are not the same. Vincent Wildlife Trust Ireland provides the following information on the Irish hare.

The Irish hare is thought to have been present from the late Pleistocene. Fossil remains have been recovered from numerous sites throughout the country including Shandon and Ballinamintra caves, Co Waterford, the Coffey and Plunkett caves, Co Sligo and in the Catacombs, Alice and Gwendoline, Newhall and Barntick caves in Co Clare.

The Irish hare is much larger than rabbits, females tending to be a little larger than males. Females hence dominate males throughout the year. During the breeding season hares seen ‘boxing’ are likely to be a female boxing a male.

The coat of the Irish hare can be quite variable but generally it is russet brown. However, much darker and lighter individuals have also been recorded. Unlike other mountain hares, the Irish hare very rarely moults to white in the winter. Nevertheless, hares with large areas of white, sometimes piebald in appearance, have been observed. While the ears are long they are shorter than the length of the head. Maximum lifespan is thought to be in the range of nine years though mortality is highest among juveniles.

Brown hares are easily distinguished from Irish hares based on the length of their ears in proportion to the head - brown hare’s ears are longer than the head. Brown hares are invasive to Ireland and were first seen here in 1852.

Rathlin Stickybeak is a blog written by two self-professed nature nerds from the island, which is situated off the north Antrim coast. It seems that on Rathlin, they have a very special hare indeed.

Among Rathlin’s population of Irish Hares, a small minority of animals have a very striking appearance. They have stunningly pale blonde fur all over and, when seen up close, bright blue eyes. ‘Normal’ Irish Hares can be quite variable in fur colour, but a true ‘Golden Hare’ is unmistakable. To see one is a special thrill indeed. These highly distinctive Golden Hares only occur on Rathlin Island, and it’s most likely their insular separation that has given rise to this unique population.

Ox Mountain Hare 

Most young are born between March and September. Spring is the main mating season and this is when 'mad March hares' may be seen. After a gestation period of 42 to 44 days, two or three leverets (young hares) are born in a grass-lined nest within a form. Baby hares are born fully furred and with their eyes open. 

After birth, the mother puts each leveret in its own form, usually in long grass, and visits them once every night, to suckle them. While she is away, the leverets lie low and still, to avoid detection by predators. When the mother is approaching, she gives them a low call and their answering calls help her to find them.

It may shock readers of a certain age to know that hares were once hunted for meat and chased for sport. Fifty years ago, and more, my father used to shoot hares. This was not done to persecute the local hare population; they were shot for their meat. I still remember the wild game taste of hare from my childhood. The hare, of course, was - and still is - a central piece of Ireland’s coursing industry. Thankfully, it is a ‘sport’ that is growing less and less.

John B Keane refers to the hare in his play, Sive. The tinker men describe a scene where they observe the underhand activities of others as they sit at their campfire boiling a hare. The hare was a valuable food source for such disenfranchised and marginalised people. Now, we live in more enlightened time and the hope that the hare can run free and prosper. I do however love the old adage: How do you make hare soup? First… you catch the hare!

Next spring, as dawn comes earlier, take a morning walk in the hope of seeing a hare. If you are lucky, you might even see two, possibly a whole bunch. They might be just lazily enjoying a few blades of new grass in a mountain meadow or they could even be ‘boxing’ each other, males and females alike. At full moon some night, take a close look to see if you can make out, not the man-o-the-moon but, the hare-o-the-moon. 

To conclude, and on a practical note, hares are easily blinded by car headlights. If you catch a hare in your lights, slow to a stop and turn off your lights. In this way you will allow the hare to escape - you’ll be glad that you did and so will the hare.