Mountain cottontail rabbits
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Mountain cottontail rabbit ( Sylvilagus nuttallii ) |
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| Sylvilagus nuttallii | ||||||||||||
| ( Bachman , 1837) |
The mountain cottontail ( Sylvilagus nuttallii ) is a mammalian species in the genus of cottontail rabbit in the leporidae . It lives in the west of the North American continent from southern Canada to over much of the United States to New Mexico and Arizona in the south.
features
The mountain cottontail rabbit is a relatively large species of cottontail rabbit. Chapman (1975) gives an average head-torso length for males of 35.2 centimeters with a range of 33.8 to 37.1 centimeters and for females an average head-torso length of 37.2 centimeters for a Span from 34.5 to 39 centimeters. The average weight of the males is around 720 grams (630 to 830 grams) and that of the females averages 790 grams (690 to 870 grams). The females are a little larger and heavier than the males, with an average difference of about 4%.
The back color is gray and the belly white, the tail is large and grayish. The ears are short and rounded at the tip. The hind feet are comparatively long and covered with long hair.
distribution
The range of the mountain cottontail rabbit covers the west of the North American continent from southern Canada in the provinces of Alberta , British Columbia and Saskatchewan to large parts of the United States to New Mexico and Arizona in the south. It extends from the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains to the eastern boundary of the Cascade Range and the Sierra Nevada . In North Dakota , the species was in large parts of eastern cottontail displaced (Sylvilagus floridanus) to which it is mainly in the northern and central Great Plains allopatrisch occurs.
The altitude distribution in California ranges from 1,500 meters to at least 3,450 meters.
Way of life
As habitats, the mountain cottontail rabbit populates different habitats with strongly varying vegetation within the distribution area. In the north, the species lives mainly in steppe areas, which are dominated by sagebrush ( Artemisia tridentata ), while in the south it occurs more frequently in wooded areas.
The species lives as a loner and feeds on the leaves of the sagebrush or juniper ( Juniperus species) throughout the year , but prefers fresh grasses especially in spring and summer. The animals usually eat in the bushes or near possible hiding places. When threatened, the rabbit usually runs about 5 to 15 meters into the next hiding place and remains there motionless with ears up. It uses structures and hiding places, but probably does not dig itself.
The mating and breeding season varies within the distribution area, although it lasts from April to early July in northeastern California and from mid-February to late July in central Oregon . Typically, females have two litters a year in California and four to five litters a year in Oregon. The gestation period lasts 28 to 30 days, after which the female gives birth to four to six young. In Oregon, a female can give birth to about 22 offspring per year.
Systematics
The mountain cottontail rabbit is assigned to the cottontail rabbit (genus Sylvilagus ) as an independent species . It was first scientifically described in 1837 as Lepus nuttallii by the American naturalist and priest John Bachman , who two years later also described Lepus artemesia , which was synonymous with the mountain cottontail rabbit . The epithet was named after the English botanist and zoologist Thomas Nuttall . In 1904, Marcus Ward Lyon assigned the species to cottontail rabbits, which were described by John Edward Gray in 1867 .
Within the species, three subspecies are described with the nominate form Sylvilagus nuttallii nuttallii and S. n. Pinetis and S. n. Grangeri .
Hazard and protection
The mountain cottontail rabbit is classified as least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) due to the size of the population and the large area of distribution. A decline in populations and an endangerment are not known.
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d Joseph A. Chapman: Sylvilagus nuttallii . In: Mammalian Species . tape 56 , 1975, pp. 1–3 ( full text (PDF; 326 kB)). Full text ( memento of the original from February 29, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j Joseph A. Chapman, Gerardo Ceballos: The Cottontails. In: Joseph A. Chapman, John EC Flux (Eds.): Rabbits, Hares and Pikas. Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. (PDF; 11.3 MB) International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), Gland 1990; SS 105-106. ISBN 2-8317-0019-1 .
- ↑ a b c d e f Sylvilagus nuttallii in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012.2. Listed by: Andrew T. Smith , AF Boyer, 2008. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
- ↑ a b Don E. Wilson & DeeAnn M. Reeder (eds.): Sylvilagus nuttallii ( Memento of the original from February 26, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed).
- ^ John Bachman : Observations on the different species of hares (genus Lepus) inhabiting the United States and Canada. Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 7, 1837; Pp. 282-361. ( Digitized version )
literature
- Joseph A. Chapman, Gerardo Ceballos : The Cottontails. In: Joseph A. Chapman, John EC Flux (Eds.): Rabbits, Hares and Pikas. Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. (PDF; 11.3 MB) International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), Gland 1990; SS 105-106. ISBN 2-8317-0019-1 .
- Joseph A. Chapman: Sylvilagus nuttallii . In: Mammalian Species . tape 56 , 1975, pp. 1–3 ( full text (PDF; 326 kB)).
Web links
- Sylvilagus nuttallii inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012.2. Listed by: Andrew T. Smith , AF Boyer, 2008. Retrieved November 25, 2012.