Tres Marias cottontail rabbits
| Tres Marias cottontail rabbits | ||||||||||||
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| Sylvilagus graysoni | ||||||||||||
| ( JA Allen , 1877) |
The Tres Marias cottontail rabbit ( Sylvilagus graysoni ) is a species of mammal from the genus of cottontail rabbits within the hare-like species . It is endemic to the Islas Marías off Mexico's west coast.
features
The Tres Marias cottontail rabbit reaches an average length of about 47 centimeters, the subspecies S. g. badistes remains somewhat smaller with an average of 44 centimeters. The tail is on average 5.0 or 3.5 centimeters long, the hind feet 9.5 or 9.1 centimeters and the ears fresh 9.2 to 9.4 and dried about 5.7 centimeters. The back color is brown to red-brown, the flanks are somewhat paler and the belly is white with a brown spot under the throat.
distribution
The Tres Marias Rabbit is endemic to the Mexican state of Nayarit belonging Islas Marías before the Mexican west coast. This is an archipelago with four islands with a total area of less than 500 km².
The altitude distribution ranges from sea level to an altitude of around 350 meters.
Way of life
Little information is available about the way of life of the species, it probably corresponds to that of the Mexican cottontail rabbit. The animals are very tame and have a very short escape distance , which is probably due to the few predators on the island. The only possible natural enemies are the raccoon ( Procyon lotor ), the red-tailed buzzard ( Buteo jamaicensis ) and the crested caracara ( Caracara plancus ).
The Islas Marías are dry compared to the mainland with an annual rainfall of less than 630 mm. The vegetation consists of dry deciduous forest and wet forest areas.
Systematics
The Tres Marias cottontail rabbit is assigned to the cottontail rabbit (genus Sylvilagus ) as an independent species . The species was scientifically described for the first time by Joel Asaph Allen as Lepus graysoni in 1877, and in 1904 Marcus Ward Lyon used the current genus classification and the designation as Sylvilagus graysoni for the first time .
The San José shrub rabbit is believed to be closely related to the Mexican cottontail rabbit ( Sylvilagus cunicularius ) that lives on mainland Mexico.
Two subspecies have been described. The nominate form S. g. graysoni lives on the islands of Maria Madre, Maria Magdalena and Maria Cleofas, while the subspecies S. g. badistes occurs on the island of San Juanito.
Hazard and protection
The Tres Marias cottontail rabbit is classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) due to the size of the population and the very small distribution area. Stocks on the three main islands have declined in the past, with the only stable population being on San Juanito Island . An expedition carried out in 1987 could not prove any animals on María Madre , Maria Magdalena and María Cleofas .
The main sources of endangerment for the animals are hunting, human settlement and the use of agricultural land, which was primarily promoted by the construction of a state prison. There is also competition with imported animals, especially pigs and goats, the white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus ) and the black rat ( Rattus rattus ). Another factor is human settlement and the use of agricultural land, which was mainly driven by the construction of a state prison. The islands of Maria Madre and Maria Magdalena are particularly affected, while Maria Cleofas and San Juanito remained uninhabited. On Maria Cleofas, however, about half of the island has been prepared for human settlement by removing natural vegetation.
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d Fernando A. Cervantes: Sylvilagus graysoni . In: Mammalian Species . tape 559 , 1997, pp. 1–2 ( full text (PDF; 367 kB)).
- ↑ a b c Joseph A. Chapman, John EC Flux (Ed.): 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; Pp. 103-104. ISBN 2-8317-0019-1 .
- ↑ a b c d e f Sylvilagus graysoni in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2011. Posted by: Mexican Association for Conservation and Study of Lagomorphs (AMCELA), FJ Romero Malpica, H. Rangel Cordero, 2008. Accessed July 9 2012.
- ↑ Don E. Wilson & DeeAnn M. Reeder (eds.): Sylvilagus graysoni ( Memento of the original from June 8, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet 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).
literature
- 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; Pp. 103-104. ISBN 2-8317-0019-1 .
- Fernando A. Cervantes: Sylvilagus graysoni . In: Mammalian Species . tape 559 , 1997, pp. 1–2 ( full text (PDF; 367 kB)).
Web links
- Sylvilagus graysoni in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2011. Posted by: Mexican Association for Conservation and Study of Lagomorphs (AMCELA), FJ Romero Malpica, H. Rangel Cordero, 2008. Accessed July 9, 2012 Design.