Ethics of shooting, hares and rabbits

[Norton]

Surprised the Greens haven't jumped on this and spun some colourful stories.

"You know who mates for life? Hares, deer, rabbits, pigs, goats, wild dogs, foxes, feral cats..."

In an unbelievable twist every hunted created on earth mates for life

[mausermate]

sorry, should clarify. "have the same mate for life"

[Norton]

Yeah I understood you.

Just joking around with phony excuses they could come up with for other things

[tommyguns82]

the land owner where I shoot said the same thing about Hares being a mate for life and that its unlucky to shoot one.
not that I've done it but I like to ask why? I know they live on top of the ground but don't they do as much damage as rabbits?
I have shot one rabbit in the guts (not thinking very early days) and I wasn't happy with myself after. I guess I learnt something that dad.
I even shoot mixo rabbits for the reason it seems as a painful way to dye even for a pest

[mausermate]

the land owner where I shoot said the same thing about Hares being a mate for life and that its unlucky to shoot one.
not that I've done it but I like to ask why? I know they live on top of the ground but don't they do as much damage as rabbits?
I have shot one rabbit in the guts (not thinking very early days) and I wasn't happy with myself after. I guess I learnt something that dad.
I even shoot mixo rabbits for the reason it seems as a painful way to dye even for a pest

Hi tg2, I made a comment about Hares, their comparison with rabbits, damage and pests in a previous post in this thread. Worth a read if you don't know about hares. Cheers.

[whert]

Missing the link mauser?

[mausermate]

Missing the link mauser?

how do I do that?

[tommyguns82]

Whert, I think mausermate was taking about this

I always understood that Hares did mate for life and when I see them i never see more than two together at once.

They are different to rabbits as they only live on top of the ground rather than underground and they do have a specified breeding season, unlike rabbits that go at it all the time. The saying breed like rabbits does not apply to hares. The rabbits dig warrens (holes) and can be a hazard to wildlife and livestock. Rabbit numbers can increase rapidly if uncontrolled. This is not the case with hares.

Yes, Hares have been known to cause some crop damage, they are fairly partial to newly planted trees and I have had trouble with that in the past. I tend to put guards around the trees rather that shoot the hares. Also, Hares are not considered a pest by the Department of Local Land Services in NSW. Rabbits, Foxes and Pigs are. It is interesting to note that Land owners have an obligation to control pests on their land and penalties can apply if you do not. Lucky for the Hare, he's not on the pest list.

[whert]

My bad guys.

Thought I was looking for a link, not the previous reply.