The Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit is an isolated population of pygmy rabbit (''Brachylagus idahoensis'') that is native only to a single Columbia Basin area of

Washington state Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

. The Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit is the smallest North American rabbit. While the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

considers the species as a whole to be of least concern, the US Fish & Wildlife Service considers this a

distinct population segment {{no footnotes, date=February 2018 A distinct population segment (DPS) is the smallest division of a taxonomic species permitted to be protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. ''Species'', as defined in the Act for listing purposes, is a ...

, and thus merits protections under the

Endangered Species Act The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA; 16 U.S.C. § 1531 et seq.) is the primary law in the United States for protecting and conserving imperiled species. Designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of e ...

. The last purebred Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit died in 2008, marking the end of the pure genetic line.

Characteristics

Pygmy rabbits are the only North American rabbits that dig burrows and live in a

sagebrush Sagebrush is the common name of several woody and herbaceous species of plants in the genus ''Artemisia (plant), Artemisia''. The best-known sagebrush is the shrub ''Artemisia tridentata''. Sagebrush is native to the western half of North Amer ...

habitat. In the wild, pygmy rabbits eat sagebrush almost exclusively in the winter; during summer, they eat a more varied diet. They may have two to four litters of about two to six kits during the spring and summer breeding seasons. Population decline is widely attributed to predation and habitat loss caused by agricultural development and wildfires.

Conservation

Unlike most rabbits, the Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit did not breed prodigiously in the wild nor in captivity, partially due to inbreeding within the tiny wild population. As a result, they were cross bred with

pygmy rabbit The pygmy rabbit (''Sylvilagus idahoensis'') is a rabbit species native to the United States. It is the only native rabbit species in North America to dig its own burrow. The pygmy rabbit differs significantly from species within either the '' Le ...

s from Idaho, and subsequent breeding efforts have been more successful. In 2009, the

Oregon Zoo The Oregon Zoo, originally the Portland Zoo and later the Washington Park Zoo, is a zoo in Portland, Oregon, United States. It is located in Washington Park, approximately southwest of downtown Portland. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest zoo ...

produced 26 kits, bringing the total offspring population for the year to 73 kits among participating breeding facilities. In 2010, the zoo found that pairings based on familiarity and preferences resulted in greater breeding success than pairings based only on genetic relatedness. Results from 2011 through 2014 efforts were encouraging for recovery of the species to the state. WDFW developed techniques for breeding wild and captive-bred pygmy rabbits in protected semi-wild enclosures on wildlife areas to increase numbers of individuals for release. From 2011 to 2013, biologists translocated 109 pygmy rabbits from Nevada, Utah, Oregon and Wyoming to the breeding enclosures in Douglas and Grant Counties, along with the remaining captive rabbits. Today over 1,300 kits have been produced in the enclosures since 2011. This high production allowed for the release of over 1,200 rabbits to the wild on Sagebrush Flat Wildlife Area from 2011 through 2014. Due to this success, beginning in 2015, pygmy rabbits are being released into a second recovery area located on the private land of The Nature Conservancy Preserve in Grant County. Released pygmy rabbits are closely monitored to collect data on breeding, habitat use, survival, mortalities and other factors to modify reintroduction techniques and adaptively manage the newly-formed population.

References

{{- Rabbits Endemic mammals of the United States Rabbit, Pygmy Columbia Basin Natural history of Washington (state) Endangered fauna of the United States Endemic fauna of Washington (state) hu:Észak-amerikai törpenyúl

Characteristics

Conservation

See also

References