Stats

Lifespan: 2-3 yrs
Size: Medium
Diet: Herbivore
Activity: Crepuscular
Social: Solitary
Biome: Desert
Range: North America
Movement: Hopping
Breeding: Live Birth
Defense: Speed
Status: Common

About

The Desert Cottontail is a compact wild rabbit of the American Southwest, recognised by its powder-puff white tail and large dish-shaped ears that shed body heat in arid landscapes. Unlike European rabbits it rarely digs its own burrows, instead sheltering in tunnels abandoned by ground squirrels or in dense thorny brush.

Life cycle

1.
newborn kit
A blind, nearly hairless kit nurses briefly each day and stays hidden in the burrow or form.
2.
juvenile
A weaned juvenile is fully furred and venturing out to graze, still small and easily startled.
3.
adult
Fully grown and able to breed.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Lagomorpha
Family: Leporidae
Genus: Sylvilagus
Species: Sylvilagus audubonii