I've been watching the cottontails this week. While others worry about them eating their garden, they don't seem to like mine. Last night I watched a bunny hop into the garden, sniff at the parsley and hop away. He found some bird food I had on the deck instead. I've also seen them eating dandelion stems, which is just fine with me, although now I question my intent to start spraying them with weed killer.
They make me laugh out loud with their antics. They chase each other around my backyard like crazy. Yesterday one turned to face the other on hind legs, and they had a jump-off. One would jump, then the other would jump. They looked a bit like fighting kangaroos. Here's what I found on this behavior:
Prior to mating, the male and female cottontails display courtship behaviors that are collectively called "cavorting". The patterns observed in cavorting can include a great deal of running, racing, hopping, and even actual fighting. Fragments of hide and hair are sometimes scattered over several acres as a result of this pre-mating behavior. It is thought that the selective advantage of this behavior is to weed out sick, less agile or less aggressive individuals from the reproductive pool. Mating can occur at any time during the warmer months of the year. Cavorting typically occurs at night.
I'm witness to the fact that cavorting at my house takes place during the day too.
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