188 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



nearly twice as long as the anterior ; feet, clothed beneath with dense, 

 furry hair ; tail, very short, covered with thick fur. Color : in summer, 

 on the upper parts the fur is gray at its base, then reddish-yellow, tipped 

 with brown ; ears, brown, with black margin at the ends ; beneath the 

 chin and under the throat, white; neck, ash; beneath the body and 

 inside the legs, white ; tail, brown above, white beneath ; in winter this 

 is changed to a nearly pure white, except the black edge of the ears ; 

 hair on the soles of the feet, yellowish throughout the year. 



DIMENSIONS. 



Length of head, 3^ to 32 inches. 



Length of ear, 3^ to 3^ inches. 



Length of head and body, 17 to 19 inches. 



Length of tail, including hairs at the tip, 2 to 2 A inches. 



Length of hiud-foot, 4| to 5^ inches. 



Length of fore-foot, 2^ inches. 



Le^Ms sijlvaticus, (Bachman.) — Common Rabhit, Gray Rabbit. 



This is one of our most common animals ; there is hardly a patch of 

 woods of an acre in extent but has one or two in it — -sometimes a larger 

 number. Its habits are greatly similar to the preceding species, and 

 may be described in a few words. It is nocturnal, lying concealed 

 during the day in its form beneath a clump of bushes ; when pursued, it 

 soon takes refuge beneath a rock, or in a hole in the ground or wall, or 

 in a hollow tree ; it builds a nest of grass, and pulls fur from its body to 

 line it with ; in this the young are born, sometimes seven or eight at 

 a litter ; two litters are boi-n during the spring and summer ; I have 

 known cases where three were born, but these were exceptions to the 

 general rule ; the young leave the parent when quite small — sometimes 

 when but two or three weeks old. The gray rabbit often visits the 

 fields and orchards, and does considerable mischief in the vegetable 

 garden, eating the tender plants of the pease, beans, cabbages and turnips ; 

 when frightened, this animal always stops and listens for a moment, 

 sometimes regarding its visitor curiously till a movement from him 

 startles it, when, with a quick, leaping run, it disappears. This species 

 is trapped in snares and box-traps, baited with apples. The flesh is 

 superior to that of the hare. In winter it lives in a burrow in the 

 ground — sometimes in a ledge of rocks. 



Description. — Head, rather short and rounded ; ears, shorter than the 

 head ; eyes, large ; limbs, moderately long ; feet, with thick, stiff hair 

 beneath, which conceals the claws, which are long, sharp and nearly 

 straight ; tail, short, completely covered with thick, long fur. Color: on the 

 head above and each side, ears, back and sides of the body, outside the 



