The New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis), also called the gray rabbit, brush rabbit, wood hare, wood rabbit, or cooney, is a species of cottontail rabbit represented by fragmented populations in areas of New England and the state of New York, specifically from southern Maine to southern New York.[2][4][5] This species bears a close resemblance to the eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus), which has been introduced in much of the New England cottontail home range. The eastern cottontail is now more common in it.[6]
Litvaitis et al. (2006) estimated that the current area of occupancy in its historic range is 12,180km2 (4,700sqmi) - some 86% less than the occupied range in 1960.[2] Because of this decrease in this species' numbers and habitat, the New England cottontail is a candidate for protection under the Endangered Species Act. Cottontail hunting has been restricted in some areas where the eastern and New England cottontail species coexist in order to protect the remaining New England cottontail population.[7]
Rabbits require habitat patches of at least 12 acres to maintain a stable population. In New Hampshire, the number of suitable patches dropped from 20 to 8 in the early 2000s. The ideal habitat is 25 acres of continuous early successional habitat within a larger landscape that provides shrub wetlands and dense thickets. Federal funding has been used for habitat restoration work on state lands, including the planting of shrubs and other growth critical to the rabbit's habitat. Funding has also been made available to private landowners who are willing to create thicket-type brush habitat which doesn't have much economic value.[6]
Description
The New England cottontail is a medium-sized rabbit almost identical to the eastern cottontail.[8][9] The two species look nearly identical, and can only be reliably distinguished by genetic testing of tissue, through fecal samples (i.e., of rabbit pellets), or by an examination of the rabbits' skulls, which shows a key morphological distinction: the frontonasal skull sutures of eastern cottontail are smooth lines, while the New England cottontails' are jagged or interdigitated.[9][10] The New England cottontail also typically has black hair between and on the anterior surface of the ear, which the Eastern cottontail lacks.[8]
The New England cottontail is identical in fur patterns and morphology to the closely related Appalachian cottontail (Sylvilagus obscurus), though their ranges do not overlap. Individuals can only be distinguished by their differing numbers of chromosomes and subtle differences in skeletal size.[11]
The New England cottontail weighs between 995 and 1,347 grams (2.194 and 2.970lb) and is between 398 and 439 millimetres (15.7 and 17.3in) long, with dark brown coats with a "penciled effect" and tails with white undersides.[8] They are sexually dimorphic, with females larger than males.[8]
As recently as 1960, New England cottontails were found east of the Hudson River in New York, across all of Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, north to southern Vermont and New Hampshire, and into southern Maine. Today, this rabbit's range has shrunk by more than 75 percent. Its numbers are so greatly diminished that it can no longer be found in Vermont and has been reduced to only five smaller populations throughout its historic range.[12]
According to at least one study, the cottontails' historic range also included a small part of southern Quebec, from which it is extirpated.[2]
Various other factors also contributed to the decline of New England cottontails:
The introduction of more than 200,000 eastern cottontails (Sylvilagus floridanus) in the early 20th century, mostly by hunting clubs, greatly harmed the New England cottontail because the eastern cottontails are a generalist species are able to survive in a wide variety of habitats (fields, farms and forest edges) and have a slightly better ability to avoid predators. The competition from the eastern cottontail led to the displacement of the New England cottontail.[12][14]
The introduction of invasive plant species such as multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora), honeysuckle bush (Lonicera maackii), and autumn olive (Elaeagnus umbellata) in the 20th century may have also displaced many native species that the New England cottontail relied upon for food.[12]
An increase in the population and density of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in the same range as the New England cottontail also damaged populations, because deer eat many of the same plants and damage the density of understory plants providing vital thicket habitat.[12]
In 2011, researchers from the University of Rhode Island reported that a survey found that the New England cottontail was on the verge of extirpation from Rhode Island, because of habitat loss, competition from eastern cottontails, and increased predator populations. The URI study collected nearly one thousand pellet samples from more than one hundred locations; DNA testing of the samples showed that only one contained the DNA of the New England cottontail.[14] A habitat analysis was conducted on an island in Narragansett Bay with no known past population by either cottontail species, as a possible refugium for the New England cottontail.[14]
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation also states that the New England cottontail's range in the state has been dramatically reduced because of habitat destruction and competition with the eastern cottontail.[9] Moreover, the New England cottontail and the eastern cottontail look nearly identical.[9] As a result, it is difficult to determine the New England cottontails' distribution.[9] The NYSDEC's New England Cottontail Initiative encourages rabbit hunters to submit whole heads from rabbits they have killed east of the Hudson River to the Department so they can be examined to help determine the range.[9]
According to the Nantucket Conservation Foundation, the New England cottontail occurs on Nantucket. Formerly, the species was thought to be extirpated on the island since the late 1990s, but the Nantucket Conservation Foundation and FWS believes that because the island still contained large shrubland habitat areas, there might still be a remnant New England cottontail population. In 2013, a DNA sample from a rabbit captured on Nantucket Conservation Foundation-owned Ram Pasture property in 2011 tested positive as a New England cottontail, showing that the rabbit still exists on Nantucket.[15]
Habitat
The New England cottontail is a habitat specialist.[2] It thrives in early successional forests—young forests (usually less than twenty-five years old) with a dense understory of thick, tangled vegetation (scrubland/brushland), preferably of blueberry or mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia).[2][8][12] Studies indicate that these forests matured into closed-canopy stands and the shrub layer began to thin in the 1960s, the New England cottontail habit declined.[2][12]
New England cottontails prefer woodlands with higher elevation or northern latitudes.[8] They create nests in depressions, some 12cm (4.7in) deep by 10cm (3.9in) wide, lining them with grasses and fur.[8] According to studies, New England cottontails "rarely venture more than 5 m from cover."[8]
Predation
Known predators of New England cottontails include weasels (Mustela and Neogale sp.), domestic cats (Felis catus), red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), fishers (Pekania pennanti),[16] birds of prey (Falconiformes), coyotes (Canis latrans), and bobcats (Lynx rufus).[8] Past predators may have included gray wolves (Canis lupus), eastern cougars (Puma concolor), wolverines (Gulo gulo), and Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis). To avoid predators, the New England cottontails run for cover; "freeze" and rely on their cryptic coloration; or, when running, follow a zig-zag pattern to confuse the predator. Because New England cottontail habitat is small and has less vegetative cover, they must forage more often in the open, leaving them vulnerable.[8]
Reproduction and development
Juvenile New England cottontail
New England cottontails breed two to three times a year.[8] Generally, the testes of the male New England cottontails begin to enlarge in late December.[8] The breeding season varies based on local elevation and latitude, and can span from January to September. The breeding season in Connecticut lasts from mid-March to mid-September, while the breeding season in Maine lasts from April to August.[8] Pregnant female New England cottontails appear between April and August.[8] The gestation period is around twenty-eight days. Litter size ranges from three to eight, with an average of 5.2 (as given by one source)[8] or 3.5 (as given by another).[2] Generally, cottontails who live in more northern habitats have shorter gestation periods and larger litters, so they produce more litters during warmer weather.[8]
During the mating season, "male New England cottontails form breeding groups around dominant females in areas of the habitat with plentiful food and good cover."[8] New England cottontails conduct a courtship display involving running and jumping, including jumping of one rabbit over the other.[8] "Though linear hierarchies for female cottontails are not clearly defined, once paired off, the unreceptive female demonstrates dominance over the male during nesting, parturition [birth] and nursing to avoid harassment by males."[8] Generally New England cottontails will "copulate again immediately following parturition."[8]
Like all cottontails, the New England cottontail has a short lifespan, typically surviving no more than three years in the wild.[8] Moreover, an average of only 15 percent of young survive their first year.[8] New England cottontails reach sexual maturity early, at no more than one year old, and many juvenile New England cottontails will breed in their first season.[8]
Young are born naked with their eyes closed.[8]Parental investment is minimal: there is no investment by male cottontails, and female cottontails nurse their young in the nest for about 16 days, often having mated again by the time the juveniles have left the nest.[8]
Diet
New England cottontails are herbivores whose diet varies based on the season and local forage opportunities. In the spring and summer, the New England cottontails primarily eats herbaceous plants (including leaves, stems, wood, bark, flowers, fruits, and seeds) from grasses and forbs. Beginning in the fall and continuing into the winter, New England cottontails transition to mostly woody plants.[2][8]
The New England cottontail is listed as "vulnerable" because of its decreasing population and reduction in suitable habitat. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is surveying suitable habitat for this species. Due to its rarity, elusiveness, and the fact that it is nearly identical to the Eastern cottontail, DNA analysis of fecal pellets one of the best ways to identify New England cottontail populations. New England cottontails are listed as "endangered" in New Hampshire and Maine, "Extirpated" in Vermont and Quebec, "species of special concern" in New York and Connecticut, and a "species of special interest" in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Surveys are being conducted to identify areas for creating suitable habitat and to identify areas with suitable habitat that may contain remnant populations. Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, and Connecticut are primary areas that may hold populations of the species. The USFWS has discovered populations in Nantucket and Eastern Connecticut. Additional surveys are being done to find more remnant populations in New England and New York.
Leporidae is the family of rabbits and hares, containing over 70 species of extant mammals in all. The Latin word Leporidae means "those that resemble lepus" (hare). Together with the pikas, the Leporidae constitute the mammalian order Lagomorpha. Leporidae differ from pikas in that they have short, furry tails and elongated ears and hind legs.
The desert cottontail, also known as Audubon's cottontail, is a New World cottontail rabbit, and a member of the family Leporidae. Unlike the European rabbit, they do not form social burrow systems, but compared with some other leporids, they are extremely tolerant of other individuals in their vicinity.
The brush rabbit, or western brush rabbit, or Californian brush rabbit, is a species of cottontail rabbit found in western coastal regions of North America, from the Columbia River in Oregon to the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula. Its range extends as far east as the eastern sides of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade mountain ranges.
The swamp rabbit, also called the cane-cutter, is a large cottontail rabbit found in the swamps and wetlands of the southern United States. The species has a strong preference for wet areas, and it will take to the water and swim.
The eastern cottontail is a New World cottontail rabbit, a member of the family Leporidae. It is the most common rabbit species in North America.
The pygmy rabbit is a rabbit species native to the United States. It is also the only native rabbit species in North America to dig its own burrow. The pygmy rabbit differs significantly from species within either the Lepus (hare) or Sylvilagus (cottontail) genera and is generally considered to be within the monotypic genus Brachylagus. One isolated population, the Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit, is listed as an endangered species by the U.S. Federal government, though the International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the species as lower risk.
The common tapeti, also known as the Brazilian cottontail, forest cottontail, or (formerly) simply tapeti is a species of cottontail rabbit. It is small to medium-sized with a small, dark tail, short hind feet, and short ears. As traditionally defined, its range extends from southern Mexico to northern Argentina, but this includes several distinctive population that have since been split into separate species. Under this narrower definition, the true common tapeti only occurs in the Atlantic Rainforest of coastal northeastern Brazil and it is classified as "Endangered" by the IUCN. The American Society of Mammalogists concurs, but also tentatively classifies several distinct populations that have not yet received proper species names into S. brasiliensis, and thus considers it to range from Venezuela south to Argentina.
The Omilteme cottontail is a cottontail rabbit found only in the state of Guerrero, Mexico in the mountain range of Sierra Madre del Sur. Belonging to the family Leporidae, it is one of fourteen species in the genus Sylvilagus, a genus restricted to the New World. The Omilteme cottontail is considered one of the most endangered rabbit species in the world and is only known and been described by very few specimens.
The Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge is a 9,125-acre (37 km2) National Wildlife Refuge made up of several parcels of land along 50 miles (80 km) of Maine's southern coast. Created in 1966, it is named for environmentalist and author Rachel Carson, whose book Silent Spring raised public awareness of the effects of DDT on migratory songbirds, and of other environmental issues.
The Mexicаn cottontail is a species of cottontail rabbit in the family Leporidae. It is endemic to Mexico where its natural habitats are temperate forests, subtropical or tropical dry forests and pastureland.
Dice's cottontail is a species of cottontail rabbit in the family Leporidae. It is found in Costa Rica and Panama, in páramo and cloud forest habitats.
The Tres Marias cottontail or Tres Marias rabbit is a species of mammal in the family Leporidae. It is endemic to the Islas Marías in Mexico.
The Appalachian cottontail is a species of cottontail rabbit in the family Leporidae. It is a rare species found in the upland areas of the eastern United States.
The marsh rabbit is a small cottontail rabbit found in marshes and swamps of coastal regions of the Eastern and Southern United States. It is a strong swimmer and found only near regions of water. It is similar in appearance to the eastern cottontail but is characterized by smaller ears, legs, and tail.
Sylvilagus palustris hefneri, also known commonly as the Lower Keys marsh rabbit, is an endangered subspecies of marsh rabbit in the family Leporidae. The subspecies is named after Playboy founder Hugh Hefner.
Lindera melissifolia, common name pondberry or southern spicebush, is a stoloniferous, deciduous, aromatic shrub in the laurel family. This endangered species is native to the southeastern United States, and its demise is associated with habitat loss from extensive drainage of wetlands for agriculture and forestry. Restoration efforts are currently being conducted.
Smith Island cottontail, Smith's Island cottontail or Hitchen's cottontail, was a subspecies of the Eastern cottontail rabbit that lived mainly on two islands on the tip of the Delmarva Peninsula in Virginia. It is generally considered to be extinct.
↑ Marianne K. Litvaitis; John A. Litvaitis (1996). "Using Mitochondrial DNA to Inventory the Distribution of Remnant Populations of New England Cottontails". Wildlife Society Bulletin. 24 (4): 725–730. JSTOR3783166.
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