Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1885-08-28
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ofA Rodent That May be De-
cr'p.inated An Agricultural Pest.
-,'s family Leporid@, which includes
Units and hares. is anexccedingly
'a,rked one. There are four in
tse,h in the upper jaw, the second
t1 hc;ns quite small, and placed
',,1v behind the principal pair,
!sh are deeply grooved in front.
ps ", are six molar teeth in each upper
,. and five in each lower jaw; they
,ot provided with roots. The much
.,hcned hind limbs. the long ears,
the short, erect tail are all charac-
s.tics of this family.
rhe common burrowing rabbit of
inu lLepus cuniculus), from which
Nlv anne species is descended, is now
lu5 wild in several places in North
.a,;ca. On Sable Island it is very
Pnmon, and Rabbit Key, near Key
RDit is completely overrun with these
;m,ls, The color IN the wild state is
l,wnish-gray above, white beneath.
is a very destructive animal, and
(otcs sad havoc in the vegetable gar
!" NV Fortunately its flesh is excellent
s,ino. and it so atones on the table for
l. damage done in the fields. The
pthit digs burrows in the earth, gen.
eaIly large numbers of them being
t"nd together, Kidding the ground,
I'd forming what is. known as a a
~ This IS a very prolific species, and
.%nlt;pljcs rapidly when not much mo-
p.ted. The female produces as many
: five or six litters of young in a single
The rabbit is hunted, when found in
overts. by spaniels or terriers. and
hot as it bounds away, or by driving
hem from their burrows with a ferret
then they are found in warrens. Very
nick and sharp shooting is needed to
# the rabbits, as they bolt before their
lnemy with precipitate haste. They
70 very tenacious of life, and stand q
treat deal of killing, often managing
. tumble into a burrow even when very
ard hit. A small and active ferret
[hould be used. as a large one will kill
rabbit. and remain in the burrow to
Favour it, and a with difficulty be
covered, while a small animal is too
ight to hold a ''coney." but is quite
q effectual in driving them from their
burrows. The short legs and burrow-
Enc habits of the rabbit at once dis
tjncuish it from the true hares. The
latter are, however, commonly called
rabbits in this country.
The commonest species of hare in
the Eastern United States is the wood
hare or grey rabbit Qepus sy%lvaticus).
This familiar rodent is readily dis
tipcuished from the other American
harres by the following characteristics:
Ears shorter than the head, and not
tipped with black; hind feet not longer
than head; color above greyish fawn,
varied with brown; beneath, whitish;
length of head and body; fifteen inches;
weight, from two to two and a half
pounds.
The grey rabbit is most active dur
ing the night, usually spending the
day. except in the breeding season,
crouched in its ''form'' in a hollow in
the ground, or in some brush heap, or
thick clump of bushes. When fright
ened from its form" it bounds away
with great speed for a hundred yards
or so, and then stops to listen before
running on. When chased by dogs, if
the underwood be thick, it winds and
doubles through the brush, and not in
frequently throws off its pursuers. If
hard pressed, it takes refuge in some
hollow tree, or in a burrow made by
the woodchuck or skunk. This spe-
cies does not itself dig any burrow, the
young being brought forth in a tree
hollow at its base, or in some similar
h ding place. The female produces
three ljtters in a season, and the young
number from five to v at a birth.
When angry or alarmed. this hare has
the habit, common to all the genus, Of
stamping on the ground with its hind
feet, making a great deal of noise fol
so small an animal. The only cry o.
this animal is a plaintive squeal wher
captured or hurt, the hares having NJ
note or call of recognition. Its food j:
very various, AMI few gardeners will
need to be told that the "cotton tall
is often very destructive. Thu
kitchen. garden and the orchard
suffer alike. many trees be
ing sometimes destroyed during
the winter by being girdled by tn
sharp teeth of the rodent. When rab
bits have once effected an entrance int
vegetable garden, they usually return
every night until they are trapped O
shot. The grey RABBIT is not easil.
tanned, and does not appear to thriv'
in captivity, although they bree'
readily enough in enclosed warrens
This species has many enemies. bein'
one of the most helpless of animals
for although swift of foot, it possesse
but little endurance, and is soon over
taken by dogs. foxes, wild cats. or it
1mplacable enemy, the ermine. Eagles
hawks. owls and snakes also prey upo,
the unfortunate ''cotton TAIL" es
pecially the young animals.
West of the Mississippi River ar
found three varieties of the Sy!vaticus
which d fer very little from the East
ern type, either in form or habits; the
are merely local races. -,
The northern hare, OF white rabbi
H. wr