European rabbits aren’t native to North America. Every population here descends from animals brought over from Europe, most likely escaped or released domestic stock rather than a self-sustaining wild colony. Missouri has only 11 records, mostly from iNaturalist, turning up near Mingo National Wildlife Refuge, Big Oak Tree State Park, and Swan Lake National Wildlife Refuge, though a number this small could just as easily reflect a handful of escaped pets as any real population.
Records are scattered thin through the year with a small bump in October and November, too few sightings to call that a real seasonal pattern. Globally the species is IUCN-listed as Endangered in its native Iberian range, a sharp contrast with how invasive it’s become almost everywhere else it’s been introduced, including, in small numbers, Missouri.
Full species profile
