Hares are sacred animals and we are always excited to see one while walking in Somerset. After the first silage mowing they can be seen making their way to a longer pasture. I am always anxious that their young will be taken up with the silage machine and not get away in time. If the farmers start the cutting in the centre of the field and work outwards it gives small mammals, particularly hares who have their young in a "form" in an open field, time to make their way out of the field and to safety while the grass is cut, whereas they are likely to be driven to the centre if the outside edge of the field is cut first. They are surprisingly large and run fast like deer, they do not hop like rabbits

For some years I have been a member of The Hare Preservation Trust: www.hare-preservation-trust.co.uk