The New England Cottontail is the only cottontail native to the northeastern United States and has declined severely due to habitat loss and competition with the introduced Eastern Cottontail. It is nearly identical to the Eastern Cottontail in appearance but requires dense early-successional shrub thickets rather than open suburban edges. Conservation efforts focus on creating and maintaining young shrubby forest stands.
Not certain it is a New England Cottontail? What animal is this? walks through what to check first and the lookalikes that catch people out.
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