Washington Pygmy Rabbit
The Oregon Zoo is breeding endangered Washington pygmy rabbits for reintroduction
to protected habitats in eastern Washington. Before 2001, no one had
successfully bred this species in captivity, so the Washington Department
of Fish and Wildlife asked the Oregon Zoo to help develop pygmy rabbit
husbandry protocols.
Weighing
less than a pound, pygmy rabbits (Brachylagus idahoensis) are the
smallest rabbit in North America. They are the only species in the genus
Brachylagus and are restricted to the Great Basin of the western
United States. Pygmy rabbits display several traits that set them apart
from cottontails (Sylvilagus) and jackrabbits (Lepus). They
are the only North American rabbit that digs burrows. They also give alarm
calls and other vocalizations, indicating some degree of sociality.
 Before
2001, relatively little was known about this species. Today, the Oregon
Zoo understands that pygmy rabbits are closely associated with tall, dense
stands of big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) growing on deep,
loose soil. Pygmy rabbits eat sagebrush leaves and the shrubs provide
refuge from predators. In winter, sagebrush makes up more than 99 percent
of the pygmy rabbit's diet. Its dependence on sagebrush is the main reason
for its decline in Washington, Oregon and California. Much sagebrush has
been burned or converted to agriculture. Sagebrush is often cleared from
large areas and replaced with exotic bunch grasses to improve livestock
forage. At the Oregon Zoo, gardeners grow sagebrush in the conservation greenhouse
for the pygmy rabbits in the zoo's breeding program.
 Pygmy
rabbits are critically endangered in Washington. Genetic studies by the
WDFW suggest Washington's rabbit population has been isolated from Idaho
and Oregon populations for as long as 7,000-10,000 years. Captive-reared
rabbits will be reintroduced to protected areas in eastern Washington.
The Oregon
Zoo is playing a part in bringing this vanishing species back to the Northwest.
After learning about pygmy rabbit husbandry from Idaho rabbits, the zoo
has seen successes with the Washington pygmy rabbits. On the brink of
extinction, these rabbits may be on the road to recovery.
Meet Meadow,
a pygmy rabbit and 2006 Zoo Mother of the Year.
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