Yes, it's hare and fox. I think other versions may have creatively misheard the lyrics, and bent them to fit the nautical theme.

But hare and fox makes sense, 'cos he's describing the inversion of the relationship between the hunter and the hunted, or in this case the tempter and the tempted.

Lovely song, I first heard This Mortal Coils version, and then chased up the Buckley lyrics in order to sing it.