"Show me your instincts..."

Animal Behavior - a seed has been planted in my mind...do animals fear death?

Let me explain my train of thought on this one, and hopefully I can find the words to make sense of what's on my mind...we'll look at the example of the lynx and the hare. The lynx is specially built for hunting hares while the hare is particularly adept at escaping, and in the end they are perfect equals to each other. If the lynx didn't hunt the hare, it would starve to death and die. Obviously, if the hare didn't run away from the lynx, it would be eaten and die. So I suppose my main question is, why does the hare run and why does the lynx hunt? Is it simply instincts that they have to take these actions, or is it an actual realization that if they do not do these things, they will die? Furthermore, if animals do not understand the concept of death but merely have the ominous consciousness of death would it be far fetched to say that humans fear something, like rejection, but don't truly understand the concept behind these feelings?

I have more, but I'm not really sure how to word it quite yet, so I'll continue thinking about it and try again later. Also, later, a continuation of the 'dream life' post - I've added some, if that's possible. I'd like to read yours too, although it can wait until Mio. Ta.