Mountain Lines by Nelson Haas

APPALACHIAN COTTONTAIL
Sylvilagus obscurus (transitionalis)

Where I live in the higher elevations of an oak-maple, hardwood forest, I seldom see a Cottontail Rabbit, but last week I did have a visit from a smaller cousin of the Eastern Cottontail, the New England Cottontail, also known as the Wood Rabbit; about as rare as a white-tailed deer.

In 1895 The New England Cottontail was distinguished from the Eastern Cottontail by close observations and measurements of the skull. Due to many variations in both species, visual identification is almost impossible but to an old woodman, skull dissection wasn’t necessary.

The Wood Rabbit is shorter by an inch, the ears stubbier, its fur displaying a more reddish cast and with a distinct black streak between the ears. It didn’t speak much, so I couldn’t tell if it had a New England accent.

In 1992, DNA analyses determined that New England Cottontails found south and west of the Hudson River Valley were yet another separate species and were tagged the Appalachian Cottontail. They have a smaller diploid chromosome compliment if anyone should ask.

To an artist’s eye, it’s another cute, furry creature, crying out to be rendered by the hand in traditional graphite as depicted above. To a wildlife biologist, it’s an intriguing new discovery; to a coyote, an exotic, tasty mouthful.