Studies on the European hare. 49. Spatial distribution of brown hare Lepus europaeus populations in habitats of various types of agriculture

In 1987 - 1990 an investigation was made on the spatial structure of brown hare Lepus europaeus Pallas, 1778 populations using the transect routes method. The investigation was carried out in two different parts of Poland that differed in the character of agriculture: I - northeastern with large fields of state farms, and II - eastcentral with small fields of individual farmers. The results indicate that independently of the agrarian structure, the distribution of hares in crops corresponds to their percentage share in the region, with exception of rape fields, which show a tendency to be avoided. There was also a significant relationship between the spatial distribution of the hare and the habitat diversity - highly variegated fields are more consistently inhabited by hares.