Korean hare
species of mammal
The Korean hare (Lepus coreanus) (Korean: 멧토끼, 산토끼, romanized: mettokki, santokki; Chinese: 高丽兎; pinyin: gāolí tù) is a species of hare native to the Korean Peninsula and adjoining parts of northeastern China. The Korean hare inhabits diverse habitats within its range, from remote mountain forests to cultivated land. Fur colour varies slightly among individuals, but is generally some shade of liver brown.
Description
An adult Korean hare weighs 2.1–2.6 kg (4.6–5.7 lb) and has a body length of 45–54 cm (18–21 in). The tail is typically 2–5 cm (0.79–1.97 in) in length, and the ears are 7.6–8.3 cm (3.0–3.3 in) long.
Taxonomy
The Korean hare was first described by Thomas in 1892. Five other species of hare in the genus Lepus occur in eastern Asia: the Chinese hare (L. sinensis), the mountain hare (L. timidus), the Manchurian hare (L. mandshuricus), the Japanese hare (L. brachyurus) and the brown hare (L. capensis). In 1974, the Korean hare was considered to be a subspecies of L. brachyurus and in 1978, a subspecies of L. sinensis, however, a study of mtDNA published in 2010 showed that the Korean hare is a valid species (L. coreanus).
Distribution and habitat
The Korean hare is native to the Korean Peninsula and the Jilin Province in northeastern China. It is found on plains, in scrublands and in mountainous regions.
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This entry incorporates text from “Korean hare” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.