The Black-tailed Jackrabbit is the speedster that so often surprises us when hiking the low shrubby deserts of the American West. They blow out of their hiding spots, clearing up to 23 feet in a bound, and reaching speeds of 30 mph. For all that speed, it's not the predators that take the greatest numbers of these animals but Tularemia, or Rabbit Fever, a highly infectious bacterium. In some years Tularemia can take 90% of a population! Yet, given "rabbits" ability to reproduce their population bounces back from each low. And that's a good thing, as the West would not be the West without these speedsters!