Pronolagus rupestris

(A. Smith, 1834)

Smith's Red Rock Hare

Figure 1. Photograph by R. Banasiak.

Figure 2. FMNH 38450. Photograph by R. Banasiak.

Type Description:

Smith, A. 1833-1834. An epitome of African Zoology; or, a concise description of the objects of the animal Kingdom inhabiting Africa, its islands and seas. South African Quarterly Journal, 2:16-32, 49-64, 81-96, 113-128, 145-160, 169-192, 209-224, 233-248.

Type Locality:

'South Africa, rocky situations' [probably Van Rhynsdorp District, Western Cape Prov., South Africa].

Measurements:

Head and body: 350-495 mm

Tail length: 40-75 mm

Hindfoot length: 75-100 mm

Ear length: 60-100 mm

Weight: 2-2.5 kg

Distribution:

Found only in stony country where the bush is dense and intermingled with grass and rocks, Pronolagus rupestris is distributed from Namibia and South Africa in the south up through suitable countryside into Zimbabwe, Malawi Tanzania and southern Kenya. (Kingdon, 1984, 1997)

Key Reference:

1. Kingdon, J. 1984. East African mammals: An atlas of evolution in Africa. (Hares and Rodents). University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 2B:358-360.
2. Kingdon, J. 1997. The Kingdon field guide to African mammals, AP Natural World Academic Press, Harcourt Brace & Company, San Diego, p. 157-158.
3. Nowak, R. M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World. Sixth ed. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 2:1720, 1723.