The Living Landscape: The black-tailed jackrabbit
- Kathleen Scavone
- Posted On
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Not your typical bunny, the rabbit that inhabits Lake County is the black-tailed jackrabbit.
But here's the confusing part – jackrabbits are really hares, according to National Geographic.
A hare, which is not a rabbit, is a relative within the mammalian order Lagomorpha.
One of the key differences between a hare and a rabbit is that a hare will freeze in place when threatened, while a rabbit will make a bee-line to its burrow to escape a predator.
The manikin-like pose that the hare assumes lasts until its attacker gets too close for comfort. Then, the hare will make use of its gangly-looking lengthy legs, which are truly lithe and nimble, and will swerve and outmaneuver – if it's lucky – its predator.
Originally jackrabbits were referred to as “jackass rabbits.” In fact, Mark Twain wrote of the subject in his book, “Roughing It.”
After a time, the moniker in the popular lexicon was changed to jackrabbit.
Another term in our lexicon is “harebrained,” meaning silly, juvenile or foolish, which originates from the critters being nervous and agitated when caged.
The saying, “mad as a March hare” came about because of hares' zany antics during their January to August mating season when they jump up, frolic and otherwise become “mad as a March hare.”
A female hare, called a jill, requires that the male, called a jack, chase her for miles to “prove” he is good paternal material. A jill will throw a punch at any male approaching her if she is not yet ready to mate.
Female jackrabbits can birth several litters a year, with between one and six kits, or baby rabbits.
Jackrabbits grow to reach a length of approximately two feet, and weigh in at three to six pounds.
Black-tailed jackrabbits are not the largest of the North American hares, since the antelope jackrabbit, along with the white-tailed jackrabbit hold the distinction of being larger animals.
Our jackrabbits have beige fur, speckled with black along with long, black-edged ears. The elongated ears can track sounds by pivoting like satellite dishes. This fine sense of hearing allows it to tune in more readily on its many predators, like coyote, bobcat and fox.
Jackrabbits work hard to defend themselves against predators by “screaming,” biting and kicking with their powerful hind feet.
They signal danger to other rabbits by thumping their feet, along with flashing the bright, white underside of their tails like a warning light.
Jackrabbits become more active in late afternoon and remain hidden in vegetation during the daylight hours.
Their diet consists mainly of grasses and shrubs. It is in the consumption of all of this plant matter that the jackrabbit obtains enough water to survive, requiring an equivalent water-to-body weight ratio to thrive.
Along with our black-tailed jackrabbits, there are five other species of jackrabbits that thrive in western and central North America.
Be sure to watch for these wild creatures and their Bugs Bunny antics this season.
Kathleen Scavone, M.A., is a retired educator, potter, freelance writer and author of “Anderson Marsh State Historic Park: A Walking History, Prehistory, Flora, and Fauna Tour of a California State Park” and “Native Americans of Lake County.”