Black-tailed Jackrabbit
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!
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Black-tailed Jackrabbit, Nevada, USA
B97E9196
JackJackrabbitBlacktail JackrabbitMammalBlacktailed JackrabbitLepus californicusAmerican Desert HareFloyd Lamb ParkLas VegasNevadaFavoriteRodentHare
Tracey Harmon Photography
on October 8, 2022Walking through the desert on the north side of Las Vegas, I spooked this Black-tailed Jackrabbit from it's hiding spot. It ran a broken course a hundred yards long, then stopped to check if I was giving chase. I'm smart enough to know I can't catch one of these speed demons any day, let alone in that day's 111 degree heat, so I took a photo instead. Don't ask me why I was walking around in the desert in that kind of heat as I don't have a smart answer!