Cottontail Rabbit
Sylvilagus flordanies
Written by Kathy Richards
The cottontail rabbit is a lagomorph. It has 2 sets of top incisors. It weighs 2-4 pounds. The Cottontail rabbit is non native and was introduce around 1900 (probably Nantucket). In the 1930’s it was stocked in MA. Now the cottontail rabbit outcompetes the native New England Cottontail.
Photo credit: Dori at English Wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
HABITAT:
The cottontail rabbit lives mostly in thickets at the edge of the woods/field. This gives it the protection from the wood as well as grass for food. They are at home in overgrown thickets with briars and brambles or small conifers growing close together. You can also find the cottontail in abandoned farms and grassy spots near cultivated areas and neighborhoods.
BEHAVIOR:
The cottontail uses its speed to dodge and avoid predators. they have been known to confuse cats by jumping over the cat. They do not dig a den in the ground but will dig a shallow bowl in the ground and line it with grass and fur from the female’s body. Cottontails can have as many as 4 litters a year If there is danger the mother will run away leaving the babies in the nest.
FOOD:
The cottontail is an herbivore. It eats clover, alfalfa, plantain, grass, buds, fruit, grain, garden vegetables, stems and bark in the winter.
PREDATORS:
Dogs, cats, hawks, owls, eagles, foxes, weasels, coyotes, snakes (primarily of the young) and mink
Check out other animals in the exhibits nearby
Gray Fox
Red Squirrel
Long Tailed Weasel