Eastern Cottontail - Peeking out through the Rabbit Patch
by Chad Meyer
Title
Eastern Cottontail - Peeking out through the Rabbit Patch
Artist
Chad Meyer
Medium
Photograph - Digital Photography
Description
I was walking along the greenway at Lake Lynn in Raleigh, North Carolina when this rabbit stuck its head up through a patch of leaves. It had not noticed me yet and I framed it in my camera as peeking out through the rabbit patch.
The eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) is a New World cottontail rabbit, a member of the family Leporidae. It is the most common rabbit species in North America.
Named for its white, cottony-looking tail, the Eastern Cottontail is 15–19 inches long (38–48 cm) and weighs 2–4 pounds (0.9–1.8 kg). Males and females are generally the same size and color.
The hair on the upper part of the body is a dense, buff-brown underfur covered by longer, coarser, gray- and black-tipped guard hairs. In the winter, their coat is longer and grayer. The underside is white. They shed twice a year. The ears are 2–3 inches long (4.9–7.6 cm) and held straight up; they can swivel independently of each other.
The hair on the upper part of the body consists of a dense, buff-brown underfur covered by longer, coarser, gray- and black-tipped guard hairs. Their underside is white. They shed their hair twice a year, and in the winter, it’s longer and grayer.
Cottontails have large, brown, protruding eyes situated high and on the sides of their head. That gives them 360 degrees of vision, except for a small blind spot directly in front. If you were to face one straight on, it would slightly turn its head to get past that blind spot to see you better. Their eyesight is designed for detection of movement and, while good, it lacks the focal precision of a human’s. They have color vision, but it seems to be limited to some blue and green wavelengths.
Their teeth are adapted to ripping and gnawing on plants, including the bark of trees. The upper front teeth grow continuously, which allows the rabbits to munch away without wearing them down. Indeed, the rabbits must gnaw to keep them “filed” to the proper length–teeth that get too long or become maladjusted can prevent them from eating and lead to starvation.
Uploaded
August 17th, 2021
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