Pictures and facts about the Pygmy rabbit

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Pygmy rabbit

Order : Lagomorpha
Family : Leporidae
Species : Brachylagus idahoensis

The Pygmy Rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) is the smallest rabbit species in North America and can easily fit inside one's hand palm. The pygmy rabbit is only one of two rabbits in America which diggs its own burrows and does it extensively, with interconnecting chambers. They can be found at elevations of 1,370 to 2,135 meters (in Nevada) and 1,520 to 1,615 meters (in California). The Pygmy Rabbits' diet consists mainly of sagebrush. Predators of the pygmy rabbit are bobcats, coyotes, weasels, badgers, owls and foxes, but also humans. The IUCN lists the Pygmy rabbit as 'near threatened', certain subspecies are near extinction.

Links

Animal Diversity web on Brachylagus idahoensis
Wikipedia
PacificBio.org on the Washington Pygmy rabbit

Facts about the pygmy rabbit

" The pygmy rabbit is the smallest rabbit in North America and weighs about 15 ounces.

A subspecies of pygmy rabbit, the Great Basin pygmy rabbit, is near extinction.

Less than 30 pygmy rabbits are believed to remain in the desert-like landscape of Eastern Washington.

The primary food source for the pygmy rabbit is sagebrush.

The Pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) is the smallest known rabbit in the world and the only rabbit to dig its own burrows.

Weighing only one pound, the pygmy rabbit is the smallest rabbit in North America.

Of the many sagebrush-dependent species in the Great Basin, the pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) is the least understood and the most vulnerable. (Full text)

USFWS Refuges on which the Pygmy Rabbit is reported. (Full text)

" The Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) is a distinct population of native rabbit that once occupied Douglas, Grant, Lincoln, Adams, and Benton Counties in central Washington. (Full text)

Pygmy rabbits are usually found in areas of dense sagebrush cover with relatively deep, loose soils. (Full text)

The pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) is a member of the family (Full text)

Age at sexual maturity - Pygmy rabbits are capable of breeding when they are about 1 year old [8,20]. (Full text)

Pygmy rabbits are in the family Leporidae. (Full text)

TAXONOMY : The currently accepted scientific name for the pygmy rabbit is Brachylagus idahoensis (Merriam) [8]. (Full text)

Fish and Game) Introduction Pygmy rabbits are a BLM Sensitive Species which occur through most of the Great Basin. (Full text)

The pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) is the smallest rabbit in North America; an adult rabbit can fit in the palm of a hand. (Full text)

Fewer than 30 Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits are believed to remain in their native eastern Washington shrub-steppe habitat. (Full text)

Today, fewer than 30 Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits are believed to remain in the wild. (Full text)

Today, the known Washington range of the pygmy rabbit is greatly restricted. (Full text)

[ 2003 Addendum ] [ 2001 Addendum ] The pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) is the smallest rabbit in North America. (Full text)

The pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) is a member of the family Leporidae, which includes hares and rabbits. (Full text)

Relatively little is known about this species, which is too bad, because pygmy rabbits are vanishing from much of their range. (Full text)

Though the historical population and range of the pygmy rabbit is unclear, evidence suggests it was significantly larger than at present. (Full text)

BackgroundThe pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis) is the smallest rabbit in North America, a sagebrush foraging specialist, and (Full text)

Idaho pygmy rabbits are propagated in captivity at Washington State University (WSU) and elsewhere and released into the wild in southeastern Idaho. (Full text)