Hares in Lithuania: a lowland game species and a Red Data Book species

The brown hare uses open habitats and woodland edges; it is hunted for its meat and fur^[1]. The mountain hare, slightly smaller, lives in the country's large wet forest tracts; in winter it turns white, with only the tips of its ears remaining black^[1].

For the biology of the brown hare, see our brown hare profile in the game encyclopaedia.

A study from Vytautas Magnus University reconstructed the trend of the brown hare over the 20th century: a peak in the early 1960s, a slump in the 1980s, a period of stability, then negative trends once more^[2]. The sharpest decline was recorded in the south-west, even though it is the region most favourable to the species^[2].

The Universal Lithuanian Encyclopaedia states that 2,273 brown hares were taken in the 2022-2023 hunting season^[1]. We found no recent national count series published online: this figure is therefore a one-off benchmark, not a trend.

The Lithuanian study identifies three climatic factors with the strongest effect: rainfall in June and July, temperatures in March and June, and the number of cold days in December and March^[2]. It also shows that abundance falls markedly when two or more driven hunts are held in the same area^[2].

The red fox is a limiting factor in districts where its bag exceeds that of the hare; parasites and road collisions complete the picture, with traffic accounting for about 5% of the hare bag studied^[2].

Hunting is regulated at national level by the Rules of Hunting in the Territory of the Republic of Lithuania, approved by the Ministry of Environment (Aplinkos ministerija)^[3]. They set the brown hare hunting season and, in the 2018 version we consulted, limit the number of hare hunts on open ground per hunting unit according to its area, with the dates to be notified in advance to the regional environmental department^[3]. These rules are amended regularly: consult the version in force in the official register of legal acts.

The hunting rules specify that game held in captivity may be kept, used and released, and enclosures set up, only in compliance with Lithuania's rules on keeping wild animals in captivity^[3]. For any question about bringing live hares into Lithuania, check with the Ministry of Environment.

The principles of a successful return to the wild are set out on our page on returning hares to the wild. GIBIS, a game breeder based in Chatte, in the Isère department of France, raises young hares there and also offers wild-caught hares from Central Europe: see our hares.