Every pet owner should know the requirements of rabbits to give them better lifestyle. Each rabbit has varying traits, behavioral adaptations, and food needs. Eastern cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus floridanus) are wild rabbits that usually live in open environment and need different type of care and attention compared to domestic species.
Eastern cottontail rabbits have brown or grey bodies, but some reddish hues are also present. Their lifespan is 1.5 to 3 years and body weight is approximately 1.9 to 4.4 pounds. Their native regions are Canada and Northwestern South America. Moreover, their favorite foods are lettuce, peas, bark, and twigs, etc. Their females remain pregnant for 26 to 28 days. These are non-aggressive rabbits that are commonly used for pollination, ecological balance, and research.
Let’s start from some interesting facts!
It is impressive that Eastern Cottontail Rabbits can run at a speed of 16 to 18mph. It is more than the average running speed of humans. They are nocturnal and remain active at night. In addition, they can also make higher jumps of around 1.8 to 2 feet and leap at a distance of 8 to 15 feet horizontally. They can also twitch the nose almost 30 to 118 times per minute.
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Characteristics of Eastern Cottontail Rabbits
What does an Eastern cottontail rabbit look like?
How tall is an Eastern cottontail rabbit?
What do Eastern cottontail rabbits eat?
Where do Eastern cottontail rabbits live?
Are Eastern cottontail rabbits good to keep as pets?
What are the uses of Eastern cottontail rabbit?
How long is Eastern cottontail rabbit pregnant?
Characteristics of Eastern Cottontail Rabbits
| Characteristics | Eastern Cottontail Rabbits |
| Scientific name | Sylvilagus floridanus |
| Type | Wild |
| Nature | Non-aggressive |
| Body length | 13.9 to 18.7 inches |
| Physical appearance | Greyish-brown with reddish hues |
| Lifespan | 1.5 to 3 years |
| Body weight | 1.9 to 4.4 pounds |
| Food | Herbs, twigs, vegetables, barks, beans, grasses |
| Native location | Canada, Northwestern South America |
| Number of Litters | 2 to 6 (3 to 8 babies per |
| Gestation period | 26 to 28 days |
What does Eastern cottontail rabbit look like?
Eastern cottontail rabbits have greyish-brown bodies, and some have reddish-brown bodies, as this variation exists according to their habitats and environmental conditions.
In summer, their fur color appears brown, but it gets greyish in the winter. Also, reddish brown fur coats are around their neck and white belly.
The fur size also varies in weather conditions, as they have larger fur in warm weather.
Moreover, their bellies also appear white from the underside and covered with brown fur from the top. They are named for the presence of white, fluffy, short tails that look like cotton balls.
Also, they have large brown-colored eyes and long erect ears that have a strong sense of hearing and help them escape from danger.
Their nose has millions of receptors that can detect different types of odors. The twitch nose exposes these sensory receptors so they can easily sense threats in their surroundings.
Similarly, their hind legs are stronger than the shorter front legs, allowing eastern cottontail rabbits to run and jump efficiently. They run at high speed to escape a chasing predator.
Also, they use their hind legs to stand and watch for predators. The number of toes on the front feet is more than those on hind feet varies, as four toes are on the back ones and five on front.
How tall is an Eastern cottontail rabbit?
On average, the body length of an adult eastern cottontail rabbit is 13.9 to 18.7 inches (1.16 to 1.55 feet). They have medium-sized bodies. But it varies in males and females.
However, the females reach the maximum length of 1.55 feet due to their genetic makeup, which codes for bigger bodies in female eastern cottontail rabbits.
The males can reach around 1.3 to 1.4 feet in length at maximum as they are born smaller than their partners. Their tail can reach a length of approximately 1.5 to 2.5 inches (3.81 to 6.35cm).
Moreover, the baby eastern cottontails are 2 to 2.5 inches long. Their body weight is around 20 to 28g (0.04 to 0.06 pounds) at young stage, which increases with age.
The weight of adult eastern cottontail rabbits ranges between 1.9 and 4.4 pounds, depending on their diet, care, and living conditions.
Other factors influencing their growth include competition for survival. Under suitable conditions, the babies called kittens grow very rapidly. They reach an ideal body size after 6 to 7 months.
What do Eastern cottontail rabbits eat?
Eastern cottontail rabbits primarily feed plant-based food. Their food preferences vary depending on the availability of food and environmental conditions.
Their food choices mainly include green vegetables and plants. While grasses make up half of their diet. They come out at night to feed on garden peas and strawberries.
Also, they eat lettuce and are a nuisance to the garden because they consume domestic crops. Therefore, the gardeners do not like them for their diet.
During summer, they eat food with high water content, like fresh green vegetables and fruits. Also, they consume grasses like alfalfa, crabgrass, etc.
They are wild bunnies, so they get water from their food. During winter, their food preferences shift to dry twigs and bark of trees when the vegetation is heavily covered with snow.
They extend their hind legs to reach the tree and eat its bark, buds, and twigs. On a foggy/cloudy day, you can also see them in the daytime because it gets too cold to forage at night.
They also eat their poop and extract the remaining nutritional elements from the digested food.
When food passes through their alimentary canal, vitamins are added to it. These vitamins ultimately become a part of their poop, so they eat it to get nutrition.
Furthermore, anything rich in carbohydrates and sugar is considered toxic for rabbits and should be given to them in small amounts.
Where do Eastern cottontail rabbits live?
Eastern cottontail rabbits are native to North America but they are also spread in the eastern and southern USA. They are also found in some parts of Mexico and Canada.
These are wild rabbits and prefer to live in open areas with dense vegetation. They are also present in meadows with thick bushes, protecting from predators and ample food and water.
You can easily spot them in your garden or neighborhood park at early dawn or dusk. Farmlands, crops, and gardens are suitable habitat for eastern cottontail bunnies. They are also well adapted to living in sub-urban or urban areas and inhabit green spaces in wild.
Are Eastern cottontail rabbits good to keep as pets?
Eastern cottontail rabbits are live in open areas because these are wild species of rabbits. They are not adapted to live in indoor environments and inhabit grasslands and vegetation.
Moreover, they feel stressed in captivity, so it is better not to keep them in cage. They like to live in open wild environment, providing enough space for physical activities and foraging options.
It is difficult for them to live in a confined space within cage because they are adapted to move around in open spaces without any restrictions.
They are not aggressive rabbits but can bite or nip at your hand or feet under stressful conditions. Additionally, they need fiber-rich food such as hay and fresh grasses.
They cannot thrive on commercial pellet food, so it would be difficult for you to maintain a suitable environment in captivity.
Do not bring them to your house if you have a nice and well-maintained garden. There is a high risk of damage as they eat vegetables and fruits, mainly lettuce and garden peas.
What are the uses of the Eastern cottontail rabbit?
Eastern cottontail rabbits are involved in seed dispersal and attack crops, farms, and gardens. They contribute to plant pollination and the maintenance of plant diversity in their habitats.
Also, they are good for an ecosystem as they become a part of the complex food web. They become a food source for other animals in the food web.
Some larger animals, like foxes, coyotes, snakes, and other wild animals kill them to eat. When they see predators, they begin to run randomly, making it difficult for predators to catch them.
Their burrowing behavior helps maintain the landscape and vegetation, indirectly contributing to ecosystem dynamics.
Wildlife researchers and ecologists also use eastern cottontail rabbits for research. It helps them better understand their behavior and social interaction with other species.
How long is Eastern cottontail rabbit pregnant?
Around 20% to 22% of the Eastern cottontail rabbits in a litter get a chance to survive each year. This low proportion is due to the presence of large number of predators in wild.
Their mating season starts in February and ends in September, so they reproduce within this time frame and produce a litter.
Their gestation period is generally 26 to 28 days, but they sometimes remain pregnant for longer due to unfavorable external environments. Each of the litter consists of around 3 to 9 kittens.
Moreover, they also get sexually mature after 3 to 4 months and become able to produce babies, which keeps their population stable.
When the gestation period ends, a mother makes a nest in depression and covers it with soft materials. The babies cannot hear at the start, lack fur, and are born with closed eyes.
Their eyes open after 6 to 7 days. The kittens are weaned after 3 to 4 weeks and leave their nest to feed themselves. After producing a litter, the females get ready to mate in just a few hours.