What do cottontail rabbits do?
Cottontails will eat any vegetation from grass to bark, twigs, and buds. Rabbits prefer to eat tender young shoots—clover, dandelions, prized tulips—and they may also damage ornamental trees by eating the bark.
Why are cottontail rabbits important to the ecosystem?
Ecological Role – As a herbivore, the cottontail rabbit converts the energy in plant matter into energy of animal matter and thus is an important link in the food web. Young cottontails are often prey for black rat snakes, opossums, raccoons, and skunks.
Are rabbits useful?
In their natural habitats, rabbits serve the two main functions of keeping plant life in check and providing food for carnivorous predators. Because they can eat a wide variety of plants, populations of rabbits play an important role in keeping fast-growing weeds and plants from overgrowing.
Why are cottontail rabbits kept in the wild?
Cottontail rabbits are one of the most common species of wild rabbits. Their characteristically white tail earned them their name while their darker body fur is meant to keep them hidden from the constant threat of nearby predators. These rabbits deserve our respect and should be kept in the wild where they belong.
What kind of senses does a cottontail Bunny have?
Cottontail rabbits possess sharp senses of hearing, eyesight and smell. This aids in their protection from predators. A cottontail bunny normally moves about in hops, but if frightened, it will either freeze in place or run as fast as 18 miles per hour to try to escape predators.
When is the best time to see a cottontail rabbit?
Cottontails are active year round and can be seen at dawn and dusk. Eastern cottontails tend to concentrate in favorable habitat such as brushy fence rows or field edges, brush piles, or landscaped backyards where food and cover are suitable.
How tall does an eastern cottontail rabbit get?
The Eastern Cottontail is a mid-sized rabbit that stands between 14 and 19 inches tall. It’s usually either a reddish-brown or gray-brown color, and it has long ears and a short tail, generally with white hair on the underside giving it its telltale cottontail appearance.
What kind of habitat does eastern cottontail rabbit live in?
Eastern cottontails tend to concentrate in favorable habitat such as brushy fence rows or field edges, brush piles, or landscaped backyards where food and cover are suitable. They need cover such as burrows or brush piles to escape predators. Eastern cottontails are rarely found in thick shrubbery or dense forests.
What should you do if you have a cottontail rabbit?
Unless you have a pair of cottontails together, they do not mesh with any other species. If you are keeping a cottontail rabbit for a short time, nutrition is of utmost importance. Since these rabbits are wild, they need a diet that mimics their natural habitat.
What does a cottontail rabbit do with its nose?
Cottontails can only use their nose to move and adjust the position of the food that it places directly in front of its front paws on the ground. The cottontail rabbit will turn the food with its nose to find the cleanest part of the vegetation (free of sand and inedible parts) to begin its meal.
What kind of shelter does a cottontail rabbit use?
Cottontails use natural cavities or burrows excavated by woodchucks or other animals. Underground dens are used primarily in extremely cold or wet weather and to escape pursuit. Brush piles and other areas of cover are often used as alternatives to burrows. In spring and fall, rabbits use a grass or weed shelter called a “form.”
