Lepus flavigularis Wagner 1844
Creators: name: Don E. Wilson
name: Thomas E. Lacher, Jr
name: Russell A. Mittermeier
Publisher: name: Lynx Edicions
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Lagomorpha
Leporidae
Lepus
Lepus flavigularis

description: 51.
Tehuantepec Jackrabbit
Lepus flavigularis
French: Lievre de Tehuantepec / German: Tehuantepec-Hase / Spanish: Liebre de Tehuantepec
Other common names: Tehuantepec Hare, Tropical Hare
Taxonomy. Lepus flavigularis Wagner, 1844,
“Mexico.” Restricted by D. G. Elliot in 1905 to “San Mateo del Mar, Tehuantepec [City],” Oaxaca, Mexico.
This species and L. callotis are similar and were considered conspecific by E. W. Nelson in 1909. A numerical analysis of morphological characteristics and distributional records supported the original designation of L. flavigularis as a distinct species. Lepus flavigularis and L. callotis are more similar to each other than to L. alleni. All three species are closely related to L. californicus. It is hypothesized that a population of L. californicus became isolated in Mexico and diverged into L. callotis. Later, a population of this divergent group became isolated on the western coastal plain, differentiating further into L. alleni. In a small area in south-eastern Oaxaca, a second isolated population evolved into L. flavigularis. Phylogenetic patterns indicate that L. flavigularis is subdivided into two distinct evolutionary lineages in two non-overlapping areas. Moreover, reduced genetic variability has been recorded in L. flavigularis. Lepusflavigularis occurs in sympatry with Sylvilagus floridanus throughoutits distribution. Monotypic.
Distribution. S Mexico, S of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, in a small area between Salina Cruz, SE Oaxaca, and extreme W Chiapas.
Descriptive notes. Head-body 570-610 mm, tail 65-95 mm, ear 110-120 mm, hindfoot 115-134 mm; weight 2:5.3-7 kg. The Tehuantepec Jackrabbit has coarse fur. Dorsal pelage is bright ocherous buff and strongly washed with black. Nape typically displays black stripe that extends posteriorly from bases of ears with median buff stripe; ears are large and entirely buff. Throat is yellowish. Rump and back of hindlegs are iron gray. Flanks and ventral fur are white. White ventral area extends up over flanks and abruptly ends against iron-gray area of rump and hindlegs. Fronts of hindlegs and tops of hindfeet are white; fronts of forelegs are grayish. Black line extends along middle of rump and over uppersurface of tail. Underside oftail is gray. Pelage color varies seasonally. In spring, black wash on back fades, and buff of upper parts fades to pale yellow. In early autumn, pelage on top and sides of head and back are rich ocherous buff and heavily washed with black.
Habitat. Tropical dry savannas of native grasses with an overstory of sparse bushes (Byrsonima crassifolia, Malpighiaceae) and scattered trees (Crescentia spp, Bignoniaceae) and coastal grassy dunes with Sabal mexicana (Arecaceae) that never exceeds a 4-5km widestrip along shores of saltwater lagoons on north side of the Gulf of Tehuantepec. It occurs from sea level up to elevations of ¢.666 m in the arid tropical zone. Dominant grasses in savannas and coastal dunes are Paspalum and Bouteloua (both Poaceae). One study noted that adult Tehuantepec Jackrabbits avoided dense vegetation and juveniles avoided not only dense vegetation but also grassland without overstory. Sex and season had no effect on habitat selection by Tehuantepec Jackrabbits.
Food and Feeding. There is no information available for this species.
Breeding. Breeding season of the Tehuantepec Jackrabbit is from late January to early November, with a peak during the rainy season in May-October. It exhibits a polygamous reproductive and mating behavior. One study showed that during the entire reproductive season, a male courted an average of six females and mounted three of them. Throughout the entire reproductive season, a female was courted by an average of five males but mounted only by one dominant male. This indicates that the Tehuantepec Jackrabbit is not promiscuous as are other species of Lepus and there is no evidence of polyandry or monogamy. Young are born c¢.32 days after copulation. Directly after birth, young are put into “beds” that are depressions in the ground covered by prairie grass (Jouvea pilosa, Poaceae). Females return to nurse and groom young once per day, usually at night, until they are weaned and abandoned c.12 days after birth. In some cases, a female calls her young with a shriek, and young answer with several shrieks. When litters are larger than two young, the female separates them into different beds at c.5 days of age. Females have an average of two litters per breeding season, with a meanlitter size of 2:3 (range 1-4 young). Therefore, a female produces an average of 4-5 young/breeding season. Both sexes are mature at 6-7 months of age.
Activity patterns. The Tehuantepec Jackrabbitis crepuscular and nocturnal.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. During a two-year study, annual home ranges and core areas of 48 radio-collared Tehuantepec Jackrabbits averaged 30-4 ha and 7-2 ha for females and 13-5 ha and 3-6 ha for males, respectively. Home ranges of females were significantly wider than those of males. Home ranges were comparable in size and overlapped between active periods and inactive periods. Home ranges of as many as 46 individuals overlapped within and between sexes. This confirms that the Tehuantepec Jackrabbit has a polygamous mating system and a nonterritorial social organization.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Endangered on The IUCN Red List. The Tehuantepec Jackrabbit is the most endangered species of Lepus; its overall population has been reduced by more than 50%. This decline has been caused by ongoing habitat loss and diminished quality of remaining habitat. In the early 1990s, TehuantepecJackrabbits occurred on coastal plains and bordering foothills of the southern side of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, in southern Oaxaca, and along the Pacific coast to Chiapas (c.5000 km?). Its distribution has been restricted to a small area between Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, and extreme western Chiapas, but it has not been found recently in Chiapas. Extent of occurrence is perhaps only 520 km? and the area of occupancy is less than 100 km* (possibly only 67 km?). The remaining four populationsare isolated and small. Threats to the Tehuantepec Jackrabbit are ongoing declines in extent of occurrence, area of occupancy, population size, number of mature individuals, and quality of remaining habitat. Total population size is estimated to be less than 1000 individuals. The Tehuantepec Jackrabbit is hunted, and habitat is threatened by encroaching agriculture as the local human population expands. Habitat is also jeopardized by alteration and degradation by introduction of exotic grasses, human-induced fires, cattle-raising activities, and human settlements. Habitat reduction has been estimated at 8-29% overthe last 24 years.
Bibliography. Anderson & Gaunt (1962), Carrillo-Reyes et al. (2010), Cervantes (1993), Cervantes, Lorenzo, Farfas & Vargas (2008), Cervantes, Lorenzo & Yates (2002), Chapman et al. (1983), Dixon et al. (1983), Elliot (1905), Farias (2004), Farias & Fuller (2009), Farias et al. (2006), Flux & Angermann (1990), Goodwin (1969), Hoffmann & Smith (2005), Lorenzo, Cervantes, Barragan & Vargas (2006), Lorenzo, Cervantes & Vargas (2003), Nelson (1909), Ramirez-Silva et al. (2010), Retana & Lorenzo (2002), Rico et al. (2008), Rioja etal. (2008, 2011).
description: Published as part of Don E. Wilson, Thomas E. Lacher, Jr & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2016, Leporidae, pp. 107-148 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 6 Lagomorphs and Rodents I, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on pages 140-141, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6625539