Photographer Page

Andy Parkinson

Mountain hares have a keen sense of smell and will circle a strange object or figure so as to approach it upwind. A human or an animal that gets close may cause a hare to flush, or burst suddenly from its shelter, and escape at a sprint.

A hare rolls around, likely to dust icy shards off its fur after getting covered by windblown snow in the Monadhliath Mountains.

A series of photographs captures the moments leading to a rare tender display as a courting pair of mountain hares touch noses. Females usually outweigh males. Larger females tend to produce more young (known as leverets) in several litters over the course of a year.

A series of photographs captures the moments leading to a rare tender display as a courting pair of mountain hares touch noses. Females usually outweigh males. Larger females tend to produce more young (known as leverets) in several litters over the course of a year.

A series of photographs captures the moments leading to a rare tender display as a courting pair of mountain hares touch noses. Females usually outweigh males. Larger females tend to produce more young (known as leverets) in several litters over the course of a year.

A series of photographs captures the moments leading to a rare tender display as a courting pair of mountain hares touch noses. Females usually outweigh males. Larger females tend to produce more young (known as leverets) in several litters over the course of a year.

A series of photographs captures the moments leading to a rare tender display as a courting pair of mountain hares touch noses. Females usually outweigh males. Larger females tend to produce more young (known as leverets) in several litters over the course of a year.

A female (beneath) rebuffs a male’s amorous advances as part of the species’ vigorous courtship ritual. Females will test males’ determination and endurance, boxing them away before leading them on a long chase through the heather. This spirited episode ended in copulation.

A mountain hare and its tiny carnivore predator, the short-tailed weasel, or stoat, stand out against the dark moorland in their white coats. In this instance, the hare was lucky: The stoat did not notice its prey was close at hand.

A mountain hare grooms itself. The timing of an individual’s molt will vary, but generally Scottish hares living at higher altitudes will turn white or gray earlier in the winter than those in low-lying areas. They’ll also revert to their darker coats later in the spring. However, scientists have found no evidence that mountain hares are adapting to shorter periods of snow cover.