South African springhare
Pedetes capensis (Forster, 1778)
The South African springhare (Pedetes capensis) is a species in the family Pedetidae, order Rodentia. Recorded adults weigh 2.78 kg to 3.16 kg and live up to 14.5 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.
Quick facts about the South African springhare
- Weight
- 2.78 kg – 3.16 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 14.5 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Herbivoresrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 20 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- Not recorded
- Gestation
- 72 days – 82 dayssrc for Gestation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 1src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 2.83 yearssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 3.6src for Litters or clutches a year
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the South African springhare
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the South African springhare live?
Not recorded
What is the South African springhare?
The South African springhare (Pedetes capensis) (Afrikaans: springhaas) is a medium-sized terrestrial and burrowing rodent. Despite the name, it is not a hare. It is one of two extant species in the genus Pedetes, and is native to southern Africa. Formerly, the genus was considered monotypic and the East African springhare (P. surdaster) was included in P. capensis.
Springhares live throughout semi-arid areas in southern Africa, preferentially in sandy plains and pans with short grasses. In agricultural areas, springhares can be considered a pest due to their destructive feeding on crops. However, they are not currently considered under an impending risk of extinction.
From the Wikipedia article “South African springhare” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=South_African_springhare&oldid=1375992582), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the South African springhare endangered?
The South African springhare is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.
How is the South African springhare classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderRodentia
- familyPedetidae
- genusPedetes
- SpeciesPedetes capensis (Forster, 1778)
Synonyms Mus cafer, Pedetes cafer angolae, Pedetes cafer damarensis, Pedetes cafer orangiae, Pedetes cafer salinae, Pedetes capensis capensis, Pedetes typicus, Yerbua capensis
Other names and names in other languages (49)
- South African spring hareEnglish
- South African spring hareEnglish
- Southern African springhaasEnglish
- Southern African springhareEnglish
- Southern springhareEnglish
- Spring hareEnglish
- Spring hareEnglish
- SpringhaasEnglish
- SpringhareEnglish
- SpringhaasAfrikaans
- يرنب جنوب أفريقياArabic
- noháč jihoafrickýCzech
- SpringhaseGerman
- Liebre SaltarinaSpanish
- savannihyppijäFinnish
- Lièvre sauteurFrench
- Lièvre Sauteur du SudFrench
- Lepre SaltantaItalian
- トビウサギJapanese
- Ntulekck
- Gwizhokck
- Khwizhokck
- Mahelanikck
- Manjengwakck
- mayelanekck
- Whozikck
- wizhokck
- SørspringhareNorwegian Bokmål
- chimanjengwendc
- Kaapse SpringhaasDutch
- postrzałka kafryjskaPolish
- Lebre-saltadoraPortuguese
- CuioPortuguese
- MajengoPortuguese
- Капский долгоногRussian
- gweteShona
- GwidzuShona
- nhinhiShona
- nhireShona
- NdlulwaneSwati
- mpileTongan
- ntloleTswana
- MatlolaneTswana
- MatsipaneTswana
- nTlolaneTswana
- nToleTswana
- TshipoTswana
- KhadzimutavhaVenda
- IndulaneZulu
Relatives of the South African springhare
Other species in the same genus Pedetes.
East African springhare
Pedetes surdaster
CompareSouth African springhare vs East African springhareSouth African springhare vs Yerbua kanguru
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the South African springhare?
An adult South African springhare weighs 2.78 kg – 3.16 kg, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the South African springhare endangered?
The South African springhare is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
How long does the South African springhare live?
The South African springhare has a recorded lifespan of 14.5 years.
How long is the South African springhare pregnant?
The recorded gestation period is 72 days – 82 days.
What kind of animal is the South African springhare?
The South African springhare (Pedetes capensis) belongs to the family Pedetidae in the order Rodentia.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals · CC0 1.0 · 1.0
Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1 - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). South African springhare (Pedetes capensis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/south-african-springhare
“South African springhare (Pedetes capensis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/south-african-springhare.
@misc{south_african_springhare_2026,
title = {South African springhare (Pedetes capensis)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/south-african-springhare},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}