Swamp Rabbit

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Swamp Rabbit

The Swamp Rabbit (Sylvilagus aquaticus) is a large cottontail rabbit

Cottontail rabbit

The cottontail rabbits are the 16 lagomorph species in the genus Sylvilagus, found in the Americas.In appearance most cottontail rabbits closely resemble the wild European Rabbit ....
found in the swamp

Swamp

A swamp is a wetland featuring temporary or permanent inundation of large areas of land, by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a substantial number of hammock , or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation....
s and wetland

Wetland

File:Mangrove trees in Everglades.JPGA wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with moisture either permanently or seasonally. Such areas may also be covered partially or completely by shallow pools of water....
s of the Southern United States.

. aquaticus is similar in appearance to other cottontails, although it is among the largest members of the genus. It is generally brown, with the bottom of its stubby tail colored white. Adult male and female specimens of this species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
weigh between three and six pound

Pound (mass)

The pound or pound-mass is a Units of measurement of massused in the Imperial unit, United States customary units and other systems of measurement....
s (1.5 - 2.7 kg

Kilogram

The kilogram or kilogrammeThe spelling kilogram is used by the International Committee for Weights and Measures and the U.S....
).

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Encyclopedia

The Swamp Rabbit (Sylvilagus aquaticus) is a large cottontail rabbit

Cottontail rabbit

Swamp

Wetland

Appearance

S. aquaticus is similar in appearance to other cottontails, although it is among the largest members of the genus. It is generally brown, with the bottom of its stubby tail colored white. Adult male and female specimens of this species

Species

Pound (mass)

The pound or pound-mass is a Units of measurement of massused in the Imperial unit, United States customary units and other systems of measurement....
s (1.5 - 2.7 kg

Kilogram

The kilogram or kilogrammeThe spelling kilogram is used by the International Committee for Weights and Measures and the U.S....
). It is uncommon in rabbits for the female to weigh as much as the male.

Diet and nesting habits

The swamp rabbit eats reed

Phragmites

Phragmites australis, the common reed, is a large perennial plant Poaceae found in wetlands throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world....
s, plant

Plant

Plants are Life organisms belonging to the Kingdom Plantae. They include familiar organisms such as trees, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae....
s, and grass

Grass

Grass is the common word that generally describes monocotyledonous green plants. The family Poaceae are the "true grasses" and include most plants grown as grains, for pasture, and for lawns ....
es native to its marsh

Marsh

In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland which is subject to frequent or continuous flood . Typically the water is shallow and features Poaceaees, Juncaceaees, Phragmites, typhas, Cyperaless, and other herbaceous plants....
y habitat. The swamp rabbit nests above ground in small dens made of dead plants and lined with its shed fur. When fleeing a predator, the swamp rabbit can run over 45 miles per hour, usually in an evasive zig-zag pattern.

S. aquaticus is a skilled swimmer, often crossing stream

Stream

A stream is a body of water less than 60 feet wide with a current , confined within a stream bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as brook, beck, Burn , creek, crick, kill, lick , rill, river syke, bayou, rivu...
s, pond

Pond

A pond is a body of water smaller than a lake, both being examples of terrain feature. Although the term pond is universally used to describe waterbodies that are smaller than lakes, an internationally recognised size cutoff has not yet been agreed, with values ranging from 2 hectares to 8 hectares used to distinguish the smaller from...
s and river

River

A river is a natural stream of water, usually freshwater, flowing toward an ocean, a lake, or another stream. In some cases a river flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water....
s. The semi-aquatic

Aquatic animal

An aquatic animal is an animal, either vertebrate or invertebrate, which lives in water for most or all of its life.Natural environments and the animals that live in them can be categorized as aquatic or terrestrial ecoregion ....
cottontail will occasionally hide from natural enemies by sitting still in shallow water, exposing only its nose to the air to breathe.

Carter incident

In 1979 the swamp rabbit species enjoyed a brief stint of notoriety when one swamp rabbit had a close encounter with Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter

James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. served as the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States from 1977 to 1981 and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize....
. In April of that year, as President

President of the United States

The President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition....
Carter was fishing on a small pond on his farm, a visibly agitated swamp rabbit approached his boat and tried to board. Carter used a paddle

Paddle

A paddle is a tool used for pushing against liquids, either as a form of Marine propulsion in a boat or as an implement for mixing....
to splash water at the rabbit in order to dissuade it from swimming towards the boat. The press dubbed this the "Killer Rabbit

Rabbit of Caerbannog

The Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog is the fictional beast in the movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail. It is considered one of the film's "famous setpieces", and makes a similar appearance in Spamalot, a musical inspired by the movie....
", in honour of the violent rabbit in the film Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Monty Python and the Holy Grail is a 1975 in film film written and performed by the comedy group Monty Python , and directed by Gilliam and Jones....
.

Swamp Rabbit

Appearance

Diet and nesting habits

Carter incident

External links