Lepus capensis
Silhouette: Jan A. Venter, Herbert H. T. Prins, David A. Balfour & Rob Slotow (vectorized by T. Michael Keesey) · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The Cape hare (Lepus capensis), also called the brown hare and the desert hare, is a hare native to Africa and Arabia extending into India. The Cape hare was described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 with the binomial name Lepus capensis, published in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
The Cape hare is part of a species complex. Lepus tolai and Lepus tibetanus were moved out based on geographic distribution and molecular characteristics. The current remaining grouping of Lepus capensis sensu lato remains paraphyletic.
As of 2005, 12 subspecies were recognised: Lepus capensis capensis Lepus capensis aquilo Lepus capensis carpi Lepus capensis granti Lepus capensis aegyptius Lepus capensis hawkeri Lepus capensis isabellinus Lepus capensis sinaiticus
Lepus capensis arabicus Lepus capensis atlanticus Lepus capensis whitakeri Lepus capensis schlumbergi The Cape hare is a typical hare, with well-developed legs for leaping and running, and large eyes and ears to look for threats from its environment. Usually, a white ring surrounds the eye. It has a fine, soft coat which varies in colour from light brown to reddish to sandy grey. Unusually among mammals, the female... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Coast National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Namib-Naukluft National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
No species of the same family or order lives in Namib-Naukluft National Park, so these are its closest relatives here: other mammals.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Cape Hare sighting in Namib-Naukluft National Park on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 16th most-seen of the 26 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February and November–December
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Cape Hare in Namib-Naukluft National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January, July and October, the lowest months.
Between 6 and 9 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Cape Hare sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
Among the best
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Cape Hare sightings, Namib-Naukluft National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in West Coast National Park (South Africa, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Cape Hare is recorded against all the mammals logged in Namib-Naukluft National Park (13 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
