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Appalachian cottontail

Scientific name: Sylvilagus obscurus

Field notes

Appearance

A small, dark cottontail with rusty-brown fur and a blackish stripe down the center of the head; smaller and darker than the Eastern cottontail with shorter ears and a more compact frame. The nape patch is rufous rather than gray, and the tail is darker on top.

Size and weight

Adults weigh 0.8–1.2 kg; body length 38–42 cm. Females are slightly larger than males.

Habitat

Appalachian cottontails inhabit deciduous and mixed forests with dense understory, brambles, and brush thickets on hillsides and ridge slopes. They prefer elevations between 300 and 1,500 m, favoring areas with rocky outcrops and fallen logs.

Distribution

Endemic to the Appalachian Mountains from Pennsylvania and West Virginia south through Kentucky, Tennessee, and North Carolina to northern Georgia. Prefers higher-elevation, rocky, forested terrain.

Diet

Feeds on clover, grasses, and herbaceous plants in warm months; shifts to woody browse, bark, twigs, and evergreen vegetation during winter.

Behaviour

Most active at dawn and dusk but may move throughout daylight in dense cover; solitary or loosely paired; relies on dense thickets for refuge and freezing behavior when threatened; territorial home range typically 0.4–1.6 hectares.

Hunting tips

Look for small, round pellet droppings clustered near brush and berry patches. Tracks are 2–3 cm wide with four toes visible; follow trails through dense thickets where vegetation is clipped. Approach slowly through briars and understory; flush rabbits by walking briskly through likely cover and watch for sudden bursts toward nearby brush piles or rocky terrain.

Whole weight

This species is logged by whole weight — the animal weighed entire, as taken.

Where it is hunted

Listed as huntable in 1 country in Huntify.

Names in other languages

Current language: en

These field notes are general species knowledge, not legal advice. Always check the current seasons, quotas and firearm rules where you hunt.