Home range may be a quarter-acre to 20 acres, depending on the availability of food and cover. An individual rarely leaves its home territory, where it knows food sources, cover and escape routes thoroughly. In winter, cottontails eat blackberry and raspberry canes, bark, buds, tender twigs of bushy plants and poison ivy vines. A rabbit possesses sharp hearing and a keen sense of smell. Its eyes are set well back on the sides of its head, providing a wide field of vision.
Rabbits are basically nocturnal, feeding in the evening, at night, and in the early morning.
Individuals shelter in thick brush or abandoned woodchuck burrows during the day, and they lead solitary lives on their home ranges. Rabbits rely on a burst of speed and a zigzagging running pattern to evade predators, but they cannot run steadily for long distances. They can swim if they have to. Cottontail litters are usually born from March through September, with about half the total litters being born in May and June. Each mature female bears an average of four litters per year.