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A new paper finds no link between mountain hare range reduction and driven grouse shooting / culling, in contrast to a previous study which showed big declines in abundance since 1999 associated with grouse moors.
The two findings are, possibly, compatible: culling could reduce the number of hares in each square, but as long as the square remains occupied then distribution won't change. Analogous to changes in abundance/distribution of Skylark, Spotted Flycatcher, et al.
But I do wonder about accidental biases in this questionnaire-derived distribution data: "Respondents were asked to...indicate the 1km2 grid squares where hares had been observed within their estate".
Could heavily-keepered estates have better info on where their hares are, compared to estates with no grouse interests? If so, then the chances of 'detecting' a hare could be higher on driven grouse moors. Also higher in more recent years, with higher culling effort.
Paper here: https://bioone.org/journals/wildlife-biology/volume-2020/issue-2/wlb.00650/Distribution-of-mountain-hares-Lepus-timidus-in-Scotland-in-2016/10.2981/wlb.00650.full
Bound to regret wading into this
Bound to regret wading into this
