Common Turkey vs European hare

Meleagris gallopavo compared with Lepus europaeus

Key Differences

• Common Turkey is Least Concern while European hare is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Turkey	European hare
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Galliformes (Galliformes)	Lagomorpha (Rabbits & Hares)
Family	Phasianidae	Leporidae (Rabbits & Hares)
Genus	Meleagris	Lepus
Species	Meleagris gallopavo	Lepus europaeus

Evolutionary Relationship

Common Turkey and European hare share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (Chordates)

Conservation Status

Common Turkey

LC — Least Concern

European hare

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Turkey	European hare
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Turkey

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, and temperate coniferous forests, among 4 distinct biome types within the Indomalayan biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Nepal), Europe (14 countries), North America (United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia, New Zealand), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador).

European hare

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical coniferous forests, among 7 distinct biome types within the Neotropic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (10 countries), North America (4 countries), and South America (8 countries). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Common Turkey

Common Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

European hare

European hare (Lepus europaeus) is classified as Near Threatened (NT) on the IUCN Red List. Close to qualifying as threatened, with populations that may become vulnerable without conservation action.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 7 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇫🇷 France 🇮🇹 Italy 🇳🇴 Norway 🇪🇸 Spain 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇺🇸 United States