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A group of rabbits is known as a colony, [7] nest, or warren, [8] though the latter term more commonly refers to where the rabbits live. [9] A group of baby rabbits produced from a single mating is referred to as a litter [10] and a group of domestic rabbits living together is sometimes called a herd. [8]
However, rabbits typically run from mustelids, and may fear them innately. Cases are known of rabbits becoming paralysed with fear and dying when pursued by stoats or weasels, even when rescued unharmed. [59] The European rabbit makes up 85% of the polecat's diet, and its availability is important to the success of breeding female mink. [25]
Female rabbits can have one to seven litters of one to twelve young, called kits, in a year; however, they average three to four litters per year, and the average number of kits is five. [15] In the southern states of the United States, female eastern cottontails have more litters per year (up to seven) but fewer young per litter.
Occurrence and litter size depend on several factors, including time of the year, weather, and location. The average litter size is four, but can range from as few as two to as many as eight, most of whom do not go on to survive to adulthood. Cottontail rabbits show a greater resistance to myxomatosis than European rabbits. [2]
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 ...
On average, domestic rabbits can live to be between 8 and 12 years old, says Blue Cross, a British animal welfare nonprofit. The oldest recorded domestic rabbit lived to be 18 years and 10 months ...
Swamp rabbits have several adaptations to avoid predators: cryptic coloration, "freezing", and rapid, irregular jumping patterns. [5] S. aquaticus is susceptible to parasitism from roundworms in the genus Brugia, specifically B. lepori, which is endemic to Louisiana. [11] The roundworms live in the subcutaneous and lymphatic tissue of the rabbit.
The New England cottontail is a medium-sized rabbit almost identical to the eastern cottontail. [8] [9] The two species look nearly identical, and can only be reliably distinguished by genetic testing of tissue, through fecal samples (i.e., of rabbit pellets), or by an examination of the rabbits' skulls, which shows a key morphological distinction: the frontonasal skull sutures of eastern ...