Summary ⁷

The desert cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii), also known as Audubon's cottontail, is a New World cottontail rabbit; a member of the family Leporidae.

Description ⁸

"Living well below sea level in Death Valley and also in woodland and grassland up to 2,000 m elevation, Desert Cottontails are able to tolerate diverse habitats. They are most active at dawn and dusk, and spend hot days resting in a burrow or in a ""hide,"" which is a shallow depression in the ground or in vegetation. Like all rabbits, they are vegetarians, feeding on grasses, shrubs, and forbs. They also eat acorns. When they can, they forage under shrubs, and when they venture out from under shelter, they move cautiously, and freeze when alarmed. They breed year-round, and mature quickly: breeding is seen in individuals as young as three months of age."

Links:
Mammal Species of the World
Click here for The American Society of Mammalogists species account

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Howard Cheng, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://www.flickr.com/photos/93183689@N00/3019124971
2. Stolz, Gary M., no known copyright restrictions (public domain), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/Sylvilagus_audubonii.jpg/460px-Sylvilagus_audubonii.jpg
3. (c) Katja Schulz, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6226/6209614415_32264a463c.jpg
4. (c) Alan Vernon, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Desert_Cottontail_2.jpg
5. (c) Katja Schulz, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2666/3869918570_94f7326f78.jpg
6. John J. Mosesso, NBII, no known copyright restrictions (public domain), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Desert_Cottontail_with_tick_in_ear.jpg/460px-Desert_Cottontail_with_tick_in_ear.jpg
7. (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sylvilagus_audubonii
8. (c) Smithsonian Institution, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://eol.org/data_objects/16146997

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• AMCELA
• Animal Diversity Web
• ASM Mammal Diversity Database
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• CalPhotos
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• iNaturalist Mammal Working Group
• NatureServe Explorer 2.0
• VertNet

Range Map

(c) Discover Life and original sources, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC-SA)

iNat Map