168 ANIMAL COMPETITOES 



culent food is usually abundant, this is not a 

 difficult task, and they soon adapt themselves 

 to an independent life. Apparently the mother 

 takes no further interest in the career of her 

 offspring. The male parent is probably never 

 concerned in the care of the young. 



Injury to gardens and orchards. The cot- 

 tontail is fond of frequenting farms and planta- 

 tions, and having taken up its residence in some 

 chosen fence-corner or thicket remains near it, 

 feeding upon the succulent vegetables in the 

 farmer's garden, or the clover, turnips, or corn 

 in his fields. In the fall it feasts upon apples, 

 cabbages, turnips, and the like left exposed in 

 garden and orchard, and in winter, when all 

 else is frozen hard or covered with snow, it 

 turns its attention to twigs and bark of woody 

 plants. The other rabbits have similar habits, 

 varying with the environment. In the West 

 some of the smaller kinds live largely in the 

 abandoned burrows of prairie-dogs, badgers, 

 and other animals. 



Rabbits feed upon nearly all growing crops, 

 but the damage to small grains is usually so 

 slight as to pass unnoticed. Clover and al- 



