Yunnan hare
Yunnan hare ( Lepus comus ) ( preparation )
The Yunnan hare ( Lepus comus ) is a mammal in the genus of the Real hares among lagomorphs. The distribution is mainly located in the central south of China in the highlands of Yunnan and Guizhou.
Features
The Yunnan hare is a small rabbit dwelling with a body weight of 1.5 to 2.5 kilograms. It resembles the closely related Tibetan wool hare ( L. oiostolus ), but is significantly smaller. The coat is gray - brown on the top and on the sides of the body pale ocher and yellow. The rump is gray and the tail is dark on the top.
Dissemination
The distribution area of the Yunnan hare lies in the central south of China in Yunnan Province with the exception of the south-west of the Mekong region, in the western Guizhou and southern Sichuan. In addition, he has been well documented from northern Myanmar.
He lives mainly in the highlands of Yunnan and Guizhou provinces at altitudes 1300-3200 meters.
Way of life
Over the life of the Yunnan hare There is very little information. It is diurnal and forms troughs, where the females are larger than the males and oval. Like all rabbits, they feed mainly on grasses and herbs, at night he can go foraging in agricultural areas.
The females give birth to two to three times a year for each one to four pups.
System
The Yunnan hare is associated as an independent species the genuine rabbit ( genus Lepus ). He slammed the original Tibetan wool Hare ( L. oiostolus ), but confirmed on the basis of molecular biological studies as a distinct species and as a sister species of the Tibetan wool rabbit.
Depending on the source, or any three subspecies of the Yunnan hare be distinguished. Chapman & Flu differ Lepus comus comus in western Yunnan, L. c. peni in eastern Yunnan, western Guizhou and south Sichuan and L. c. pygmaeus in parts of Yunnan.
Threats and conservation
The species is " not endangered " by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN ) due to the population size and the relatively large area of distribution as estimated ( Least concern ). As potential risk the formation of isolated groups in the mountains is estimated from the displacement of the species by agriculture.