Brush rabbit

The brush rabbit, Sylvilagus bachmani, also called the western brush rabbit or Californian brush rabbit, is a cottontail rabbit found in western coastal regions of North America, from the Columbia River in Oregon to the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula. Adults measure about 30.3 to 36.9 centimetres in length and weigh 511 to 917 grams. Brush rabbits most commonly live in chaparral vegetation but are also found in oak and conifer habitats, and studies in Oregon showed that it rarely left the brushy areas it inhabits. It feeds mainly on grasses and forbs, especially green clover, and also eats berries and browses on shrubs. To survive it remains immobile in brushy areas and runs in a zig-zag when in open spaces, and it climbs onto low branches to escape predators. It is not hunted as other cottontail species are, probably because of its small size.