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Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
Mammals Around Las Vegas, Wildlife Around Las Vegas
Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)

Desert Cottontails (Sylvilagus audubonii) are the common "cottontail bunnies" seen in the deserts around Las Vegas. The head and body are about 12-inches long, and the ears are about 4-inches long. The eye is large and black, and the tail is short and fluffy white. The body color is grayish mottled with black and white, and the nape (back of the neck) is rusty red.

Around Las Vegas, there are two species of rabbits in the deserts: Desert Cottontails and Black-tailed Jackrabbits. Cottontails are much smaller and have much shorter ears than Jackrabbits, and cottontails have a cottony-white tail. Jackrabbits are larger, have much longer ears, and have a black tail. There is another species of cottontail too, the Mountain Cottontail, but it occurs at higher elevations than Desert Cottontails.

Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
Notice the reddish patch between the shoulders

Desert Cottontails can be found in the desert areas around Las Vegas in the Lower Sonoran (Creosote-Bursage Flats) and Upper Sonoran (Mojave Desert Scrub and Pinyon-Juniper Woodland) Life Zones. Look for Desert Cottontails at Lake Mead, Red Rock Canyon, the Desert National Wildlife Range, Mojave National Preserve, and other lower-elevation areas.

The Desert Tortoise Enclosure behind the Visitor Center at Red Rock Canyon NCA is a good place to see fairly tame Desert Cottontails.

Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
Desert Cottontail
Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
Desert Cottontail
Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
This Desert Cottontail is paler than most on the sides
Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
Typical Desert Cottontail is darker on the sides
Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii) Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii) Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
Desert Cottontail habitat
Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
Desert Cottontail track (sitting spot) in red sand

Note: All distances, elevations, and other facts are approximate.
copyright; Last updated 231228

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