The Cottontail 



curious stamping which rabbits indulge in when angry or excited. 

 The most conspicuous species of rabbits in the East are described 

 beyond. In the West are many species and varieties more or 

 less closely allied to these, and one very distinct form, the Jack 

 rabbit. 



The Cottontail 



Lepns floridanus mallurus (Thomas) 



Also known as Rabbit, Gray Rabbit. 



Length. 17 inches. 



Description. Above, a fine mixture of brown, cinnamon and 

 russet, grayer on the rump, dusky edgings to the ears and 

 an indistinct dusky spot between them; below, white with 

 a brown band across the breast; lower surface of the tail 

 pure white. 



Range. Lowlands of the southern and middle States from 

 northern Florida to the Hudson Valley in the East, and to West 

 Virginia and Tennessee, west of the Alleghanies. Other 

 closely related varieties replace this form to the north and 

 south, and many allied species occur in the West. 



For the last week I have been watching a rabbit that was 

 caught in a box trap. It quickly became tame enough to allow 

 itself to be stroked and patted without exhibiting much alarm, 

 and when it escaped from its cage, which it did several times, 

 offered but little resistance on being caught and replaced in 

 bondage, at last even allowing itself to be taken up without a 

 struggle. 



It ate readily whatever was offered it apples, raw cabbage, 

 and even the dry hay of which its bed was composed, besides 

 gnawing all the bark from the twigs of apple tree which I placed 

 in its cage, but never while I was watching and, I think, only 

 at night, apparently hardly changing its position while the day- 

 light lasted. 



Yesterday morning I found that it had not only escaped from 

 its cage, a frequent enough occurrence, but that it had also 

 managed to make its way to the outside world, and the snow 

 on the lawn has since been thickly marked with its tracks lead- 

 ing off across the orchard finally, and I trust that by this time 



75 



