They spend most of the day lying in a “form”—a depression in the ground or under bushes. Hares do not dig burrows as rabbits do. Instead, they tend to use dens or burrow already made by warthogs or aardvark.

Females do not spend much time with their young.

The female African hare gives birth to one or two young at a time, which are born fully haired and with open eyes. The mother only spends a short amount of time each day suckling the young; the rest of the time they hide in forms trying to avoid the attention of predators. Female hares can reabsorb an embryo if there is a problem with the pregnancy or when food is scarce.

Hares run away when threatened.

To protect themselves, African hares rely on camouflage, speed, and their extremely sensitive senses of hearing and smell. If an enemy is near, then the hare will freeze and crouch low to the ground. If danger continues to approach, then the hare may pop into the air and dash away in a zigzag pattern. They will give a shrill scream if in peril but are otherwise mostly silent.