- Reticulum is a small, faint constellation in the southern sky. Its name is Latin for a small net, or reticle—a net of crosshairs at the focus of a telescope eyepiece that is used to measure star positions. The constellation is best viewed between October and December, and save for one main star visible in ideal conditions, cannot be seen from north of the 30th parallel north.
- Star Tales - Lepus (ianridpath.com)
This constellation was known to the Greeks as Λαγωός (Lagoös), the Greek word for hare; Lepus is the more recent Latin name. Eratosthenes tells us that Hermes placed the hare in the sky because of its swiftness. Both Eratosthenes and Hyginus referred to the remarkable fertility of hares, as attested to by Aristotle in his Historia Animalium (History of Animals): ‘Hares breed and bear at all seasons, superfoetate (i.e. conceive again) during pregnancy and bear young every month.’
