Brush rabbits have brownish-gray fur with a white underside. These creatures are adaptable and can live almost anywhere that there are fields, woods, or swamps. They live in towns around parks and houses, but prefer brushy habitat, feeding on wild grasses and plants, cultivated plants, bark, buds, and twigs. Cottontails do not live in colonies, and the brush rabbit is one of the few species that build their own burrows, which they use as observation posts. Cottontails have excellent hearing, large eyes with a wide vision range, and a keen sense of taste, but do not have a well-developed sense of smell.
All cottontails are excellent swimmers.
A mother brush rabbit can drive off a snake or even a raccoon twice her size when defending her young. Because a wild rabbit can be quite vicious in defending itself, it is not a good idea to try to pick one up. All rabbits, including brush rabbits, are prolific breeders, having three to seven litters a year, and producing one to twelve offspring in each litter. Each rabbit can produce up to thirty-five offspring each year. They are prey for foxes, wildcats, lynxes, coyotes, badgers, weasels, hawks, eagles, dogs, and humans.