FAMILY OF HARES AND RABBITS 



291 



SWAMP RABBIT 



Sylvilagus aquaticus (Bachman) 



General Description. — A good-sized Rabbit living 

 in low, swampy woods and bottom lands with neither 

 ears nor hind legs conspicuously elongated. Head small ; 

 ears short for a Rabbit; body of normal proportions; 

 tail very short ; legs long, hind legs longer than fore 

 legs but not so much so as in the Prairie Hares ; incisors 

 very large ; pelage harsh but thick ; general color above 

 ochraceous-brown, below white. 



Dental Formula. — Incisors, ^^^^ ; Canines, ^^^^ ; Pre- 

 molars. ^^ : Molars, ^^ ^28. 

 2—2 3—3 



Pelage. — Adults: Sexes identical. Seasonal varia- 

 tion slight. General color above, ochraceous-brown 

 lined with black; sides paler and with less black; 

 breast dark yellowish-brown; chin and belly white; 

 tail above dark reddish-brown, beneath white ; a black 

 spot on forehead ; feet dark chestnut-brown ; ears dark 

 brown bordered with white in front, with fulvous 

 behind ; sometimes a black patch on cheeks ; nape red- 

 dish-brown. Young: Similar to adults. 



Measurements. — Total length, 20.5 inches ; tail ver- 

 tebrae, 2.7 inches ; hind feet, 4.2 inches. 



Range. — River bottoms and swampy woods from 

 Georgia west to middle Texas, and north to Oklahoma 

 and Illinois. 



Food. — Various plants and green vegetation. 



Remarks.— The Swamp Rabbits are a well outlined, 

 though small, group of North American Rabbits, sepa- 

 rated from their kindred largely on the basis of cranial 

 characters, but also by such superficial details as the 

 shorter ears, tail and hind feet and the harsh pelage. 

 Four species and subspecies of Swamp Rabbits are 

 found north of the Rio Grande. 



Related Species 



Swamp Rabbit. — Sylvilagus aquaticus aquaticus 

 (Bachman). Typical animal as described above. 

 Georgia north to southern Illinois, and west to middle 

 Texas. 



Coast Swamp Rabbit. — Sylrilagus aquaticus littor- 

 alis Nelson. Redder and darker. Narrow belt of 

 swamps and marshes along the Gulf coast from Mis- 

 sissippi through Louisiana to Matagorda Bay, Texas. 



Carolina Swamp Rabbit. — Syk'ilagns palustris 

 /^alustris (Bachman). Smaller and with under side of 

 tail grayish instead of white. Lowlands along rivers 

 and coast from North Carolina south to Florida. 



Marsh Rabbit. — Sylvilagus palustris paludicola 

 (Aliller and Bangs). Dark reddish-brown with short 

 broad ears. Peninsular Florida. 



As its name implies, the Swamp Rabbit dwells 

 among the bogs, swamps, and bottom-lands, and 

 is thus not so well known as its cousins of the 

 uplands. It is one of the most water-loving of 

 the Rabbits, taking readily to water for food or 

 to escape pursuit. In Texas, Vernon Bailey says, 

 " they live in swamps, marshes, and low, brushy 

 woods near the bayous, making trails that often 

 lead through shallow water. They usually jump 

 from under old logs, or tangles of briers and 

 underbrush, and go dashing off with a heavy 

 thumping rim, but usually with speed enough to 

 escape the dogs. Fires are said sometimes to 

 drive them out of the swamps and marshes by 

 hundreds." They are excellent swimmers, and 

 when chased by dogs will swim back and forth 

 across the creeks. Mr. H. P. Attwater says: 

 " When frightened from their hiding places and 

 chased by dogs they take refuge in hollow trees 

 and in holes in the river bluffs. The dogs seem 

 '_ to have more difficulty in trailing them than they 

 do the Cottontails and Jack Rabbits, the Swamp 

 Rabbits often eluding the hounds by taking to 



v\'ater. I have seen them on several occasions 

 swimming across the river while the dogs were 

 hunting for them on the other side." 



The Marsh Rabbit makes its home in the low- 

 lands along rivers and the coast of the South- 

 eastern States from Dismal Swamp, Virginia, 

 south to Florida, and west to Mobile Bay, Ala- 

 bama. It is seldom seen more than 500 feet 

 above sea level. It is slightly larger than the 

 average Cottontail, and runs low on the ground. 

 It readilv takes to the water, and if disturbed 

 will plunge into the deepest bogs. Bachman 

 states that it makes for its young a domed nest 

 with an entrance on one side. In Peninsular 

 Florida and the adjacent coast islands and north 

 along the east coast to San Mateo, it is replaced 

 by the Carolina Swamp Rabbit. This animal 

 is the smallest, darkest, and most reddish-brown 

 of the Marsh Rabbits and has short, broad, and 

 rounded ears. It has short legs, and is some- 

 what cltmisv, like an overgrown Rat, in appear- 

 ance. It seldom roams higher than 100 feet 

 above sea level. 



