The Irish hare is found nowhere else. It is a distinct subspecies of the mountain hare that has been on this island since before the last glaciation, and it is a priority species for conservation in Northern Ireland.
Unlike the brown hare of Britain, the Irish hare occupies everything from coastal grassland to upland heath, and it does not burrow — it rests in a shallow depression in the vegetation called a form, relying on stillness and cover rather than a hole in the ground. That single fact explains most of what makes it vulnerable to development and to farming operations.
It is a grazer of grasses, herbs and heather, and in doing so plays a part in maintaining the structure of the grassland and heath it occupies. It is also prey for foxes and raptors, making it part of the working machinery of an upland or farmland system rather than a bystander in it.
The pressures are habitat-driven: the shift from hay to silage and the earlier, more frequent cutting that comes with it, loss of rough grassland and field margins, agricultural intensification, and fragmentation of the mixed habitat mosaic hares need across a year.
The Irish hare is protected under the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985 as amended, and is a Northern Ireland priority species. It is an offence to intentionally kill, injure or take one.
Hares become a consideration on larger sites involving rough grassland, upland margins, heath or extensive farmland — wind and solar schemes, quarry extensions, larger housing sites on the edge of the countryside, and infrastructure crossing open ground.
Because they use a form rather than a burrow, the practical issues are around disturbance and the timing of vegetation clearance and ground works. Mitigation typically involves retaining rough grassland and margins, sensitive timing, and directional clearance so animals can move out ahead of machinery.
Hares are larger and longer-limbed with much longer, black-tipped ears, and they live entirely above ground. Rabbits are smaller, live in burrow systems and are not protected in the same way.
It is widespread but its numbers fluctuate considerably and it is a priority species for conservation in Northern Ireland, which reflects concern about the long-term trend rather than immediate scarcity everywhere.
Rarely for a single dwelling. It is more likely on larger schemes involving rough grassland or upland margins, or where a desk study shows records nearby.
A PEA is the standard first look at a development site: what habitats are present, what protected species could be there, and what further survey work — if any — the application will need.
Read about preliminary ecological appraisals →
Other species: Bats · Badgers · Otters · Nesting birds · Red squirrels · Pine martens · Barn owls
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