Georgia Animal Research Project

By: Quendan George

CLASSIFICATION

• Species: Sylvilagus Floridanus• Classification– Kingdom: Animalia– Phylum: Chordata– Class: Mammalia– Order: Lagomorpha– Family: Leporidae– Genus: Sylvilagus

ANATOMY

• Stocky or chunky build. Long ears, distinctive cotton puff white tail and large hind feet

• WEIGHT– Weighs between 1.8 and 4.4 pounds– Females tend to be heavier

• LENGTH– Between 14 and 19 inches long

LOCOMOTION

• The eastern cottontail has powerful hind limb muscles that help it run fast

DIET

• The eastern cottontail is a herbivore and eats the following :

• Grasses • Tree buds and branch

tips• Tree bark• Some garden

vegetables

HABITAT

• Eastern cottontail prefers edge environments between woody vegetation and open lands

RANGE

• Range of eastern cottontail spans from southern Canada to Central America

• Mostly found in the eastern part of the United States except Maine, parts New Hampshire , Vermont, and New York

ADAPTATIONS

• Good eyesight and sense of hearing so they can stay alert for predators

• Fur is more brown in the summer months and becomes grayer during winter

LIFE CYCLE

• The average life span of an eastern cottontail in the wild is usually less than three years.

• In captivity , though an eastern cottontail can live up to eight years

REPRODUCTION

• Eastern cottontails can reproduce by one year old

• A female can have up to five litters with three to eight young in one season

• Baby cottontails are born after a thirty day gestation period and depend on their mother for food for about two weeks

BEHAVIOR

• Crepuscular (look for food between dusk and dawn) and hide during the day

• Solitary animals who don’t like each other• Show they are ready to mate by running,

racing, hopping, and fighting• Defense mechanisms: freezing in place when

afraid or runs very fast in a zigzag (flushing)

ENEMIES

• Hawks• Owls• Foxes• Coyotes• Weasels• Man

SURVIVAL STATUS

• The eastern cottontails are common throughout their range.

• They have no special status

REFERENCES

• Mikita, K. 1999. “Sylvilagus floridanus” (On-line), Animal Diversity Web, Accessed September 29, 2014 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/Sylvilagus_floridanus/

• NRCS Wildlife Habitat Management Institute 1999. (On-line) “Eastern Cottontail”, Accessed September 29, 2014 at http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb1045390.pdf

• Uno, R. 2011. “Eastern Cottontail Rabbit Adaptations” (On-line), Buzzle, Accessed September 30, 2014 at http://www.buzzle.com/articles/eastern-cottontail-rabbit-adaptations.html