Eastern cottontails are the second most-recorded mammal in Massachusetts, but NatureServe classifies them as exotic here, not native. The state’s original rabbit is the New England cottontail, a close look-alike that’s been squeezed out of much of its range. Eastern cottontails, originally from farther west and south, were widely stocked for hunting in the 20th century and outcompeted the native rabbit in the brushy, second-growth habitat both species need.
Records run heaviest from April through July, peaking in June, which tracks the long breeding season that lets a female raise several litters before fall. Blue Hills Reservation and Parker River National Wildlife Refuge both hold the mixed scrub and field edges this rabbit favors, though the record here reflects an introduced species that’s since become the common one, not the one Massachusetts started with.
Full species profile
