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Like other jackrabbits, the black-tailed jackrabbit has distinctive long ears, and the long powerful rear legs characteristic of hares.Reaching a length about 2 ft (61 cm), and a weight from 3 to 6 lb (1.4 to 2.7 kg), the black-tailed jackrabbit is the third-largest North American jackrabbit, after the antelope jackrabbit and the white-tailed jackrabbit.
The desert hare is native to Central Asia, its range extending from Afghanistan and northern Pakistan to Mongolia, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Gansu and Inner Mongolia in northern China. It is found at altitudes of up to 3,500 or 4,000 m (11,500 or 13,100 ft) in arid and semi-arid areas, scrubby desert, grassland and steppe. [1]
It can be found in grassy hills or plains, preferring habitats with large, desert shrubs above long grass. This species can also be found in more barren desert habitats. [ 5 ] A 2014 study focusing on ecology indicated that the ideal habitat for an antelope jackrabbit includes grassy ground cover and a mesquite overstory.
Hares are generally larger than rabbits, with longer ears, and have black markings on their fur. Hares, like all leporids, have jointed, or kinetic, skulls, unique among mammals. They have 48 chromosomes, [10] while rabbits have 44. [11] Hares have not been domesticated, while some rabbits are raised for food and kept as pets.
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Both rabbits and hares are almost exclusively herbivorous (although some Lepus species are known to eat carrion), [4] [5] feeding primarily on grasses and herbs, although they also eat leaves, fruit, and seeds of various kinds. Easily digestible food is processed in the gastrointestinal tract and expelled as regular feces.
Coprophagy, the consumption of an organism's own fecal material to double the amount of time food spends in the digestive tract, is a common behaviour amongst rabbits and hares. This habit allows the animal to extract the maximum nourishment from its diet, and microbes present in the pellets also provide nutrients. Like other hares, they run fast.
California ground squirrel (Spermophilus beecheyi) Order: Rodentia Family: Sciuridae. Thirty species of squirrels, chipmunks, and marmots occur in California. Subfamily Sciurinae (tree squirrels and flying squirrels) Humboldt's flying squirrel, Glaucomys oregonensis. San Bernardino flying squirrel, G. o. californicus (CDFW special concern; endemic)