Editing Brush rabbit

{{Short description|Species of mammal}}
{{More citations needed|date=January 2014}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Brush rabbit<ref name=msw3>{{MSW3 Hoffmann | pages = 208}}</ref>
| image = Sylvilagus bachmani 01035t.JPG
| image_caption = Brush rabbit ([[William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge|Finley National Wildlife Refuge]])
| genus = Sylvilagus
| species = bachmani
| authority = ([[George Robert Waterhouse|Waterhouse]], 1839)
| subdivision_ranks = Subspecies
| subdivision = * ''[[San Jose brush rabbit|S. b. mansuetus]]''
* ''S. b. riparius''
| range_map = Brush Rabbit area.png
| range_map_caption = Brush rabbit range
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn">{{cite iucn |author=Kelly, P.A. |author2=Lorenzo, C. |author3=Alvarez-Castaneda, S.T. |date=2019 |title=''Sylvilagus bachmani'' |volume=2019 |page=e.T41302A45192710 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T41302A45192710.en |access-date=13 November 2021}}</ref>
}}

The '''brush rabbit''' ('''''Sylvilagus bachmani'''''), or '''western brush rabbit''', or '''Californian brush rabbit''',<ref>{{Cite journal |doi = 10.1038/188073b0|pmid = 13767210|title = Myxomatosis in a Californian Brush Rabbit (Sylvilagus bachmani)|journal = Nature|volume = 188|issue = 4744|pages = 73–74|year = 1960|last1 = Marshall|first1 = I. D.|last2 = Regnery|first2 = David C.|bibcode = 1960Natur.188...73M|s2cid = 4264949}}</ref> is a species of [[cottontail rabbit]] found in western coastal regions of North America, from the [[Columbia River]] in [[Oregon]] to the southern tip of the [[Baja California Peninsula]]. Its range extends as far east as the eastern sides of the [[Sierra Nevada (U.S.)|Sierra Nevada]] and [[Cascade Range|Cascade]] mountain ranges.

==Description and taxonomy==
[[Image:American Rabbit.jpg|left|thumb|260px|Brush rabbit]]
The brush rabbit is a small rabbit with short legs and a short tail. It is dark gray on the sides and back, and pale gray on the belly and the underside of the tail. The whiskers are mostly black, although some have white tips. Adult rabbits measure anywhere from {{cvt|30.3 to 36.9|cm}} in length,  and range in weight from {{cvt|511 to 917|g|lb}}.<ref name=Kays2009>{{cite book |last1=Kays |first1=Roland |title=Mammals of North America |date=2009 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-0691140926 |page=40 |edition=2nd}}</ref>

Large numbers of geographically defined subspecies have been proposed, including in Oregon, ''ubericolor''; in [[California]], ''cinerascens'', ''mariposae'', ''riparius'', ''tehamae'' and ''trowbridgii''; and in Baja California, ''cerrosensis'', ''exiguus'', ''howelli'', ''peninsularis'' and ''rosaphagus''.  Subspecies ''bachmani'', ''macrorhinus'' and ''virgulti'' are less geographically restricted. Of the various proposed subspecies, only the following are currently recognized, the others are synonyms: ''S. b. ubericolor'', ''S. b. cinerascens'', ''S. b. bachmani'', ''S. b. exiguus'', ''S. b. howelli'', ''S. b. cerrosensis''.<ref name=msw3/>

It has been noted that numbers of the [[eastern cottontail]] were brought west to reproduce and provide a food source for the settlers. The interbreeding of the two species has occurred where the brush rabbit has in parts of Oregon developed the white cottontail although retaining its smaller size.

==Habitat and ecology==
Brush rabbits require dense bramble clumps or other thick, brushy habitat. These bramble clumps often have extensive networks of trails and runways. The species occasionally uses [[burrow]]s made by other species, but does not dig its own. The home range is very small, less than {{cvt|2000|m2}}.<ref name=Chapman1990>{{cite book |last1=Chapman |first1=Joseph |title=Rabbits, hares, and pikas : status survey and conservation action plan |date=1990 |publisher=International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources |isbn=2-8317-0019-1|page=99 }}</ref>

Brush rabbits most commonly live in [[chaparral]] [[vegetation]], but are also found in oak and conifer habitats. In the [[San Francisco Bay Area]], the brush rabbit was found to concentrate its activities at the edge of brush and exhibits much less use of grassy areas. It uses the interior brush of the wilderness, and this may be a better environment for it than the chaparral one. Studies done on the brush rabbit in Oregon also showed that it rarely left the brushy areas it inhabits. Brush may be used more in the drier seasons, while [[grass]]es are used in the wetter seasons in relation to growth of annual vegetation. Use of [[Habitat (ecology)|habitat]] also probably is related to the [[Reproduction|breeding]] season.

==Distribution==
The brush rabbit is confined to the Pacific Coast, from the Columbia River in the north to the tip of Baja, Mexico in the south. It does not occur east of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Mountain ranges.<ref name=Chapman1990/>

==Behavior==
Brush rabbits forage alone or in small groups. They can be seen sunning in the mid-morning, but are otherwise secretive and wary. They thump the ground with their back feet when startled.<ref name=Kays2009/>

The brush rabbit feeds mainly on grasses and [[forb]]s, especially green [[clover]]. It also eats [[Berry|berries]] and browses on shrubs.<ref name=Kays2009/>

A trapping study of the brush rabbit in the [[Berkeley Hills]] in Northern California indicated that males had larger home ranges than females at all times of the year, and especially in May when females were moving the least. The home ranges of the brush rabbit are estimated to average just under {{convert|1|acre|m2|order=flip|sp=us}} for males and just under {{convert|0.5|acre|m2|order=flip|sp=us}} for females. The shapes of these home ranges are usually circular, but depending on the vegetation, can differ in size and shape. Range use probably is not circular in shape or uniform, but rather consists of a series of runways that directly connects<!-- series is singular --> high-use areas within brush habitat. Intraspecific sociospatial behavior appears to be variable and may reflect local resource conditions. Several rabbits have been observed to feed in the same area simultaneously, but maintained interindividual distances of {{convert|1 to 24|ft|m|1|order=flip|sp=us}} before aggressive chases occurred. Females tended to not overlap, while males showed relatively extensive overlapping; this may indicate that females are territorial. Groups of brush rabbits may serve social purposes, such as predator detection, but this has not been proven.

==Reproduction==
The brush rabbit's breeding season varies from north to south. In Oregon, breeding begins in February and ends in August, while in California it begins in December and ends in May or June. Litter size also varies between regions. Studies have found the average litter size in Oregon to be 2.8, in northern and central California to be 3.5, and in west central California to be 4.0. The brush rabbit is one of the less fecund members of the genus, producing about 15 young in five to six litters per year.<ref name=Kays2009/> The [[gestation]] period of the brush rabbit is about 22 days, and kits are [[altricial]]. Male brush rabbits breed from around October to November through June to July. The brush rabbit's most reproductive activity occurs from January to April. In the areas of San Francisco, pregnant female brush rabbits can be found from the first week of December until the ends of June. Female brush rabbits have about four litters per year.<ref name="Mossman">{{Cite journal |last=Mossman |first=Archie S. |date=1955 |title=Reproduction of the Brush Rabbit in California |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3796850 |journal=The Journal of Wildlife Management |volume=19 |issue=2 |pages=177–184 |doi=10.2307/3796850 |jstor=3796850 |issn=0022-541X|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Predators and survival techniques==
Its predators include [[cougar]], [[coyote]], [[fox]], [[bobcat]], [[weasel]], and various [[bird of prey|raptors]] and [[snake]]s. Its survival strategies include remaining immobile when in brushy areas, and zig-zag running when found in open spaces. It also climbs onto low branches to escape from predators and other perceived threats.<ref name=Kays2009/>

==Human interaction and conservation status==
The brush rabbit is not hunted as are many other cottontail species, probably because of its small size. It is not a major cause of damage to crops or other human developments in its habitat.

While the overall population of brush rabbits is stable, one of its subspecies, the riparian brush rabbit (''S. b. riparius''), is listed as an [[endangered species]] by the [[United States Fish and Wildlife Service]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Riparian brush rabbit (Sylvilagus bachmani riparius) |url=https://ecos.fws.gov/ecp0/profile/speciesProfile?sId=6189 |website=U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service |access-date=12 August 2019}}</ref> Formerly numerous along the [[San Joaquin River]] and [[Stanislaus River]], it is now reduced to a population of a few hundred in the [[Caswell Memorial State Park]] and is being reintroduced to the adjacent [[San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge]] in the San Joaquin Valley, California.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sommer |first=Lauren |date=May 4, 2023 |title=The latest to be evacuated from California's floods? Bunnies |work=NPR News |url=https://www.npr.org/2023/05/04/1173424166/the-latest-to-be-evacuated-from-californias-floods-bunnies}}</ref> This population has been negatively impacted by the [[habitat destruction|destruction]] of the [[riparian zone|riparian habitat]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Sylvilagus bachmani riparius |url=http://explorer.natureserve.org/servlet/NatureServe?searchName=Sylvilagus+bachmani+riparius |website=NatureServe Explorer |access-date=12 August 2019}}</ref> Another subspecies, the [[San José brush rabbit]], is considered critically endangered.

==Myxomatosis==
Brush rabbits are a natural carrier of the ''[[myxoma virus]]'', a [[poxvirus]] in the genus ''[[Leporipoxvirus]]''. This virus causes only a mild disease in brush rabbits, but causes a severe and usually fatal disease called [[myxomatosis]] in [[European rabbit|European (pet) rabbits]]. The disease is usually transmitted from one rabbit to another by biting insects.<ref name="Meredith 2013">{{cite journal |last1=Meredith |first1=Anna |title=Viral skin diseases of the rabbit |journal=Veterinary Clinics of North America: Exotic Animal Practice |date=2013 |volume=16 |issue=3 |pages=705–714 |doi=10.1016/j.cvex.2013.05.010|pmid=24018033 }}</ref>

== Subspecies ==
Three geographic subspecies of the brush rabbit are acknowledged as follows.<ref name="Orr-1935">{{Cite journal |last1=Orr |first1=R T |last2=Orr |first2=R. T. |date=1935 |title=Descriptions of three new races of brush rabbit from California |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/part/44365 |journal=Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington |volume=48 |pages=27––30}}</ref>

=== ''Sylvilagus bachmani tehamae'' ===
This subspecies of ''Sylvilagus bachmani'' is geographically found from the Rogue River Valley, Jackson County, Oregon, through Northern California, along the inner coast ranges, to southern Lake County and along the Sierra Nevada to Placer County.<ref name="Orr-1935" /> It is also found in the Sacramento Valley.<ref name="Orr-1935" />

The subspecies is medium in size, paler in color, has larger ears and shorter hind feet.<ref name="Orr-1935" />

=== ''Sylvilagus bachmani macrorhinus'' ===
This subspecies of ''Sylvilagus bachmani'' is geographically found in west-central California—from San Francisco to the north end of Monterey Bay and inland from Solano County south to Santa Clara County.<ref name="Orr-1935" /> 

It is smaller in size but has longer ears.<ref name="Orr-1935" />

=== ''Sylvilagus bachmani riparius'' ===
This subspecies of ''Sylvilagus bachmani'' is geographically found on the west side of the San Joaquin River in northern Stanislaus and southern San Joaquin counties. This subspecies is pale and gray-sided.<ref name="Orr-1935" />

''Sylvilagus bachmani riparius'' is listed as an endangered species both by California and federally, primarily due to habitat destruction. In the San Joaquin Valley, over 93% of the habitat was destroyed for urban and agricultural use.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Kelt |first1=Douglas A. |last2=Kelly |first2=Patrick A. |last3=Phillips |first3=Scott E. |last4=Williams |first4=Daniel F. |date=2014-06-26 |title=Home range size and habitat selection of reintroduced Sylvilagus bachmani riparius |journal=Journal of Mammalogy |language=en |volume=95 |issue=3 |pages=516–524 |doi=10.1644/13-MAMM-A-187 |s2cid=73661738 |issn=0022-2372|doi-access=free }}</ref> A population of '''riparian brush rabbits''' has moved into restored habitat in the new [[Dos Rios State Park]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Smith |first=H.R. |date=Spring 2024 |title=The Everything Park |url=https://baynature.org/article/after-fifteen-years-a-new-state-park-in-the-central-valley/ |journal=[[Bay Nature]] |volume=24 |issue=2 |pages=28–33}}</ref>

==References==
{{Commons category|position=left|Sylvilagus bachmani}}
{{Reflist}}

{{Lagomorpha|L.}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q1508885}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Sylvilagus]]
[[Category:Mammals of Mexico]]
[[Category:Mammals of the United States]]
[[Category:Fauna of the California chaparral and woodlands]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Sierra Nevada (United States)]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Baja California Peninsula]]
[[Category:Mammals described in 1839]]
[[Category:Taxa named by George Robert Waterhouse]]