Southern African Springhare

The Southern African Springhare is one of the most sought-after species to track on an African safari, and knowing its habits turns a hopeful search into a confident one. This field guide breaks down how to recognise the Southern African Springhare at a glance, the habitats and times of day that reward patient searching, and the practical tracking craft guides rely on. Read it before you set out and you will spend less time scanning empty bush and more time watching the animal itself.

Hind limbs strong and long, adapted for jumping; tail long and bushy, similar to a rabbit; ears large and erect; fur soft, dorsal side gray-brown, ventral side lighter; eyes large, adapted for nocturnal activity

Concentrate your search for the Southern African Springhare in Open woodland savanna, open grasslands and shrublands; prefers dry soils suitable for digging burrows, the habitat where it feels most secure and finds its food. It is most active Nocturnal, active frequently at night, resting in burrows during the day, so plan your game drives around those hours rather than the heat of midday. Across the continent the species ranges through Mainly distributed in southern Africa including South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; also scattered in parts of Kenya; occasional records in the Maasai Mara region, and within that range the richest sightings come where prime habitat meets low human disturbance.

Finding the Southern African Springhare starts long before you see it. Learn the habitat it depends on — Open woodland savanna, open grasslands and shrublands; prefers dry soils suitable for digging burrows — and you narrow the search from an entire landscape to a handful of promising corners. Animals are not scattered at random; they sit where food, water, cover and safety overlap, and the Southern African Springhare is no exception.

The Southern African Springhare (Pedetes capensis) is a distinctive part of Africa's living landscape, and understanding it adds depth to every sighting. This guide gathers the facts that matter most to travellers — where it lives, what it eats, how to tell it apart from similar species, and how it is coping in a changing world. Think of it as the background a good guide would share before you meet the animal in the field.

The Southern African Springhare is typically found in Open woodland savanna, open grasslands and shrublands; prefers dry soils suitable for digging burrows, where the vegetation, water and cover match its needs through the seasons. Its diet is built around Primarily herbivorous, feeding on roots, seeds, grass leaves, and other plant material, and those food sources shape where it spends its time and how far it must travel each day. Watching what and where an animal feeds is often the quickest way to predict where you will find it next.

The Southern African Springhare is most active Nocturnal, active frequently at night, resting in burrows during the day, a rhythm tied to temperature, predators and the habits of its prey or grazing. In the field you can pick it out by these features: Hind limbs strong and long, adapted for jumping; tail long and bushy, similar to a rabbit; ears large and erect; fur soft, dorsal side gray-brown, ventral side lighter; eyes large, adapted for nocturnal activity. Learning one or two reliable field marks lets you name it with confidence even at a distance or in poor light.

On the IUCN Red List the Southern African Springhare is currently assessed as Least Concern, a status that reflects both its numbers and the pressures on its range. The main threats it faces are Habitat destruction and agricultural expansion; occasionally hunted for food; threats from road traffic, and these rarely act alone — habitat loss, human conflict and climate shifts tend to compound one another. Choosing responsible operators and well-managed reserves is one practical way visitors help fund its protection.