Editing European hare (section)

=== Food and foraging ===
[[File:Feldhasen Flutmulde.jpg|thumb|left|Hares feeding in a small group|alt=Photograph of a group of feeding hares]]
The European hare is primarily [[herbivorous]] and forages for wild grasses and weeds. With the intensification of agriculture, it has taken to feeding on crops when preferred foods are not available.<ref name=iucn /> During the spring and summer, it feeds on [[soy]], [[clover]] and [[corn poppy]]<ref name="Reichlin"/> as well as grasses and herbs.<ref name=Naughton/> During autumn and winter, it primarily chooses [[winter wheat]], and is also attracted to piles of sugar beet and carrots provided by hunters.<ref name="Reichlin">{{cite journal |author=Reichlin, T. |author2=Klansek, E. |author3=Hackländer, K. |year=2006 |title=Diet selection by hares (''Lepus europaeus'') in arable land and its implications for habitat management |journal=European Journal of Wildlife Research |volume=52 |issue=2 |pages=109–118 |doi=10.1007/s10344-005-0013-3 |bibcode=2006EJWR...52..109R |s2cid=44207794 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225809353}}</ref> It also eats twigs, buds and the bark of shrubs and young fruit trees during winter.<ref name=Naughton/> It avoids [[cereal]] crops when other more attractive foods are available, and appears to prefer high energy foodstuffs over crude [[dietary fiber]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Schai-Braun, S.C. |author2=Reichlin, T. S. |author3=Ruf, T. |author4=Klansek, E. |author5=Tataruch, F. |author6=Arnold, W. |author7=Hackländer, K. |year=2015 |title=The European hare (''Lepus europaeus''): A picky herbivore searching for plant parts rich in fat |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=10 |issue=7 |page=e0134278 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0134278 |pmid=26230115 |pmc=4521881|bibcode=2015PLoSO..1034278S |doi-access=free}}</ref> When eating twigs, it strips off the bark to access the vascular tissues which store soluble [[carbohydrate]]s. Compared to the European rabbit, food passes through the gut more rapidly in the European hare, although digestion rates are similar.<ref name="Stott">{{cite journal|author=Stott, P. |year=2008 |title=Comparisons of digestive function between the European hare (''Lepus europaeus'') and the European rabbit (''Oryctolagus cuniculus''): Mastication, gut passage, and digestibility |journal=Mammalian Biology – Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde |volume=73|issue=4|pages=276–286|doi=10.1016/j.mambio.2007.07.002|bibcode=2008MamBi..73..276S }}</ref> It is sometimes [[coprophagia]]l eating its own green, faecal pellets to recover undigested proteins and vitamins.<ref name=Diversity>{{cite web | url=http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Lepus_europaeus.html  | title=''Lepus europaeus'' European hare | work=Animal Diversity | publisher=University of Michigan |access-date= 11 May 2011}}</ref> Two to three adult hares can eat more food than a single [[sheep]].<ref name=Naughton/>

[[File:Zaječí hovínka na Bousce.JPG|thumb|right|Faecal pellets|alt=Photograph of fecal pellets]]
European hares forage in groups. Group feeding is beneficial as individuals can spend more time feeding knowing that other hares are being vigilant. Nevertheless, the distribution of food affects these benefits. When food is well-spaced, all hares are able to access it. When food is clumped together, only dominant hares can access it. In small gatherings, dominants are more successful in defending food, but as more individuals join in, they must spend more time driving off others. The larger the group, the less time dominant individuals have in which to eat. Meanwhile, the subordinates can access the food while the dominants are distracted. As such, when in groups, all individuals fare worse when food is clumped as opposed to when it is widely spaced.<ref name=Monaghan1985>{{cite journal |author1=Monaghan. P. |author2=Metcalfe, N. B. | year=1985 | title=Group foraging in wild brown hares: Effects of resource distribution and social status | journal=Animal Behaviour | volume=33 | issue=3 | pages=993–999 | doi=10.1016/S0003-3472(85)80033-6 |s2cid=53160508 }}</ref>