An Eastern cottontail rabbit
WAY down the slope, almost to the bottom of the ravine (below our small house in the mountains), we spotted a grazing rabbit early this evening. The long camera lens gave me a better shot... In perfect rabbit fashion, it proceeded to eat entire stalks of grasses (probably from the winter-strewn hay that my gardening companion had put down for mulch).
As wildlife gardeners, we're happy to see such a large and robust rabbit, obviously a survivor over years; as vegetable gardeners, we hope s/he will stay down on the slope eating grasses!
But it would take a bold rabbit to make it up to the raised beds above the house, the ones full of lettuces.
We'll see! But we had fun watching him/her consume the grasses (through binoculars) this afternoon.
As wildlife gardeners, we're happy to see such a large and robust rabbit, obviously a survivor over years; as vegetable gardeners, we hope s/he will stay down on the slope eating grasses!But it would take a bold rabbit to make it up to the raised beds above the house, the ones full of lettuces.
We'll see! But we had fun watching him/her consume the grasses (through binoculars) this afternoon.
I saw three cottontails on my early morning walk today. We see them often in our yard, too. So far they haven't done much damage to my plants, but I don't grow vegetables. I know they're troublesome for some, but I love to see them.
ReplyDeleteOh, I know they're tremendous herbivores, but I'm always glad to see them. In our (ex)urban settings, it seems to me that rabbits aren't as adaptable as squirrels, raccoons, and other critters.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to have them eat clover, etc. which seem to be their preference; only in extreme drought years do they seem to want to eat the Rudbeckia hirta, etc. in my garden.
I've got two or three running around my suburban yard--fat ones! This year they have only nibbled the basil, I suspect. Last year they liked the lima bean seedlings. I worry the Cooper's hawk will get them, but they are probably too big.
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