The brush rabbit, also known as the California brush rabbit or western brush rabbit, is a species of cottontail rabbit on the west coast of the U.S. from the Columbia River in Oregon south to the tip of the Baja California peninsula. It goes as far east as the eastern sides of the Cascade and Sierra Mountain ranges.
It is small, with short legs, short ears and a short tail. The hair is evenly dark, It can be distinguished from the desert cottontail by their smaller, inconspicuous tail and uniformly colored ears (no black tips). There are eight subspecies of brush rabbit in California, 13 subspecies total, but I find nothing that helps distinguish the subspecies.
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| Brush rabbit, found early in the morning in Live Oak Canyon, Redlands. |
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| Although I am less certain of this one, I believe it is also a brush rabbit, also found in Live Oak Canyon. |
They come out after sunset and are active until early morning, but emerge a few hours later until late morning.
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| By contrast, this is a desert cottontail, also found in Live Oak Canyon. |
They are mostly solitary and have a very small range (an acre for males and a half acre for females). When threatened they tend to stay perfectly still. They tend to be found in heavy, brushy cover, thus the name.
This must be the rabbit stuffed animals are modeled after. Soooo CUTE.
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