About Cottontails

Cottontails, which are also known as cottontail rabbits, are small, stocky rabbits with a short fluffy white tail. There are two populations of cottontails, including the New England cottontail and the eastern cottontail, but they are nearly identical in appearance and behavior. They are considered a pest in many areas.

  1. Geography

    • The range of the New England cottontail stretches west to the Hudson River and south to the Appalachian Mountains. The eastern cottontail's range includes populations in the eastern United States, the southern United states, southern Canada and Central America.

    Location

    • Cottontail rabbits prefer to live on the edges of open fields and in meadows. They are drawn to areas that have cover in the form of high grass or thickets, and they will also be found along fence rows, on the edges of forested areas and on the borders of marshy areas.

    Reproduction

    • Females will create a shallow depression in dense grass that they line with fur and dried grass for their litters. They produce three to eight young at a time, which are born naked, blind and completely helpless. Baby rabbits, or kits, are completely independent by the time they are 1 month old.

    Diet

    • Cottontail rabbits are herbivores, and they will eat a wide variety of vegetation. During the summer, they eat grasses, vegetables and fruits, and during the winter, they eat soft bark, small twigs and woody plants. They will eat their own feces to get the most out of the undigested plant matter. They tend to forage for food around dawn and dusk.

    Defenses

    • When cottontails detect danger, they will freeze in place and rely on their brownish coloration to camouflage them from danger. If the predator comes too close, they will dash off in a zig-zag pattern to confuse anything that is chasing them. They can attain speeds as fast as 18 miles per hour when they are traveling over a short distance.

    As Pests

    • Cottontail rabbits are often considered pests because they can destroy young shrubs or trees and damage garden crops. A 3-foot tall fence with a 2-inch by 2-inch mesh can be used to deter rabbits as long as it extends 1 foot underground. Live traps can also make a dent in the population and chemical taste and odor repellents can be applied to keep rabbits away.