Venezuela cottontail rabbit
| Venezuela cottontail rabbit | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Sylvilagus varynaensis | ||||||||||||
| Durant & Guevara , 2001 |
The Venezuela cottontail rabbit ( Sylvilagus varynaensis ) is a species of mammal from the genus of cottontail rabbits ( Sylvilagus ) within the hare-like (Lagomorpha). The species is endemic to Venezuela .
features
The Venezuela cottontail rabbit is a medium-sized species of its genus with a head-torso length of 43.4 to 44.5 centimeters. It is thus the largest of the three species of cottontail rabbits occurring in South America, which includes subspecies of the Florida forest rabbit ( S. floridanus ) and the tapeti or Brazilian cottontail ( S. brasiliensis ).
distribution
The distribution area of the Venezuela cottontail rabbit is limited to the lowlands of Venezuela in the states of Barinas , Portuguesa and Guárico . So far, only individual sites are known that were used for the first scientific description. However, it is assumed that the distribution area is larger than previously known.
Within the distribution area, the Venezuela cottontail rabbit probably lives sympathetically with the Florida cottontail and the tapeti.
Way of life
Very little information is available about the way of life of the Venezuela cottontail rabbit. According to the findings known so far, the animals are very closely tied to a vegetation characterized by Sida and Malvastrum species, which is described as a savanna type with low bushes and herbaceous plants. These investigated areas were located in the vicinity of tropical dry forests.
They feed mainly on Sida species. The breeding season probably covers much of the year. The animals examined indicated a particularly high mating activity in September to December, but a total of around 270 days could be detected as the reproductive time. The gestation period lasts 35 days, the average litter size is 2.63 young animals per litter and female.
Systematics
The Venezuela cottontail rabbit is assigned to the cottontail rabbit (genus Sylvilagus ) as an independent species . No subspecies are distinguished within the species.
The Venezuela cottontail rabbit was first described in 2001 by the scientists Pedro Durant and Manuel A. Guevara from the Universidad de Los Andes in Mérida , Venezuela, and was published in the journal Revista de Biología Tropical . In 2000, the authors published two further articles on the habitat and way of life of the species.
Hazard and protection
The Venezuela cottontail rabbit is not classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) in the “ data deficient ” category due to the very small amount of available data on the species . No data or estimates are available about the population size . The main threats to the species include above all human influences such as clearing and habitat changes for agricultural use. In addition, there is hunting by humans and, above all, by feral domestic dogs and competition with domestic animals.
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d e f Sylvilagus varynaensis in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012.2. Posted by: P. Durant, MA Guevara, 2008. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
- ↑ a b Don E. Wilson & DeeAnn M. Reeder (eds.): Sylvilagus varynaensis ( Memento of the original from May 24, 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).
- ↑ Pedro Durant, Manuel A. Guevara: A new rabbit species (sylvilagus, Mammalia: leporidae) from the lowlands of venezuela. Revista de Biología Tropical 49 (1), 2001; Pp. 369-381. ( Abstract )
- ↑ Pedro Durant, Manuel A. Guevara: Habitat of a Venezuelan lowland rabbit, Sylvilagus varynaensis (Lagomorpha: Leporidae). Revista de Ecologia 7 (1-2), 2000; Pp. 1-10. ( Full text, PDF ( Memento of the original from March 4, 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 note. )
- ↑ Pedro Durant, Manuel A. Guevara: Reproduction and productivity in Sylvilagus varynaensis, a lowland Venezuelan rabbit. Zoocriaderos 3 (1), 2000: pp. 1-10. ( Full text, PDF ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. )
literature
- Pedro Durant, Manuel A. Guevara: Habitat of a Venezuelan lowland rabbit, Sylvilagus varynaensis (Lagomorpha: Leporidae). Revista de Ecologia 7 (1-2), 2000; Pp. 1-10. ( Full text, PDF )
- Pedro Durant, Manuel A. Guevara: Reproduction and productivity in Sylvilagus varynaensis, a lowland Venezuelan rabbit. Zoocriaderos 3 (1), 2000: pp. 1-10. ( Full text, PDF )
- Pedro Durant, Manuel A. Guevara: A new rabbit species (sylvilagus, Mammalia: leporidae) from the lowlands of venezuela. Revista de Biología Tropical 49 (1), 2001; Pp. 369-381. ( Abstract )
Web links
- Sylvilagus varynaensis inthe IUCN 2012 Red List of Threatened Species . Posted by: P. Durant, MA Guevara, 2008. Retrieved November 29, 2012.