A Friend or Relation?

For the past month or so, we’ve had the pleasure of the company of an Eastern Cottontail rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus) in our backyard. I’m a bit surprised that our efforts at making our backyard critter friendly have netted us this unexpected visitor. Not that cottontails are an unusual site in suburban neighborhoods—they're actually quite a common site on Amy and my walks—but this one has stayed mostly in our yard for almost a month now. This might be due to the fact that she was so young when we first encountered her (see the photo that my wife took the first evening we spotted her. Look how tiny her ears are!).

Eastern cottontails can be found over most of the eastern half of the United States. They are generally brown or grey of coat and have white tummies and tails that are puffy and white on the underside.

Their preferred habitat provides cover when needed, and since they are herbivores, includes areas with plenty of grasses for feeding. Our rabbit has dined quite a bit on dandelions and the other odd weeds that I can’t seem to remove from our yard. However, I’ve noticed that my tender bonsai tree leaves are also good snacking material when I was foolish enough to leave them at ground level! Many people say that it’s not a good idea to feed wildlife as they can become dependent, and their foraging skills can erode. Although we generally try to let nature run its course, we can’t help but throw vegetable scraps on the lawn now and then to keep her interested in staying.

We almost named this rabbit “Twitchy” because sometimes she just bounces all over, changing directions and hopping in funny ways. If I can figure out how to post a video of it, I’ll try and put one up.

The life expectancy of an Eastern cottontail is relatively short given that they often fall prey to larger predatory animals. This is one of the reasons rabbits tend to reproduce so quickly. However, these rabbits are not without their own bag of tricks. They are very fast and can change direction easily to confuse pursuers and leap great distances (8 to 15 feet) to get out of harm's way. It’s a good thing we have a sturdy fence and plenty of overhanging trees for cover. I guess it’s not so surprising after all that this one has decided to stay so long! Find out more about the Eastern Cottontail at places like Wild Texas and NatureWorks.