Causes of admission and outcomes of brown hare (Lepus europaeus) leverets at wildlife rescue centres in the Czech Republic

Background Wildlife rescue centres care for orphaned and injured young as an integral part of their work. However, inappropriate interventions in nature can have a negative effect on the survival of young hares, especially when the care of these young is not very successful. The aim of this study was to assess the number of brown hare leverets admitted to rescue centres in the Czech Republic in the period from 2010 to 2019, the causes of their admission to rescue centres and their outcomes. Results We evaluated the number of brown hare leverets admitted to rescue centres in the Czech Republic in the period from 2010 to 2019 and the outcomes associated with their leaving these rescue centres. We found that the number of brown hare leverets admitted increased during the monitored period (rSp = 0.6364, p < 0.05). The most frequent reasons for admission were the admission of orphaned young (49.15%), leverets brought needlessly (19.60%) and leverets that had been bitten by other animals (18.63%). More (p < 0.05) young admitted to rescue centres died (40.76%) than were reared successfully and released back into the wild (32.40%). Leverets that had been caught needlessly or orphaned and late-born leverets survived and could be released back into the wild (38.56, 34.51 and 52%, respectively), while fatalities were recorded in most leverets bitten by another animal (65.05%) or hit in a collision with a vehicle (97.06%). Most young hares (76.92%) that were exhausted or starved at the time of admission could not be saved. Conclusions Since only a small proportion of hares in a litter survive until adulthood in the wild, young animals being found and taken needlessly to rescue centres may harm the hare population. Our results show that only around one in three healthy young hares admitted to rescue centres are reared successfully. It is, in our opinion, of fundamental importance to the protection of brown hare leverets to inform the public of this issue and prevent needless interventions into natural rearing in the wild.

Circulation and Climate Variability in the Czech Republic between 1961 and 2020: A Comparison of Changes for Two “Normal” Periods

Thirty-year periods are treated in climatology as spans with relatively representative and stable climatic patterns, which can be used for calculating climate normals. Annual and seasonal series of circulation types were used to compare two 30-year sub-periods, 1961–1990 and 1991–2020, the second one being strongly influenced by recent global warming. This analysis was conducted according to the objective classification of circulation types and the climatic characteristics of sunshine duration, temperature, humidity, precipitation, and wind speed as calculated for the territory of the Czech Republic during the 1961–2020 period. For both sub-periods, their statistical characteristics were calculated, and the statistical significance of differences between them was evaluated. There was a statistically significant increase in the annual frequencies of anticyclonic circulation types and a significant decrease in cyclonic circulation types during 1991–2020 compared with 1961–1990. Generally, in both 30-year periods, significant differences in means, variability, characteristics of distribution, density functions, and linear trends appear for all climatic variables analysed except precipitation. This indicates that the recent 30-year “normal” period of 1991–2020, known to be influenced more by recent climate change, is by its climatic characteristics unrepresentative of the stable climatic patterns of previous 30-year periods.