White-tailed jackrabbits carry a NatureServe rank of S2, imperiled, in New Mexico, even though the species stays secure (G5) rangewide across the northern Great Plains and Rocky Mountains. New Mexico sits near the southern edge of their range, in high grasslands and sagebrush country rather than the low desert further south.
Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, Carson National Forest, and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, where the 59 state records concentrate, are all high, cold northern New Mexico terrain, fitting for a jackrabbit that turns white in winter and needs open, treeless ground to spot predators. Reports spike sharply in January and June, though with only 59 records total, that’s more likely winter tracking in snow and summer trail traffic than a true seasonal swing in numbers.
This jackrabbit sits in the rare bucket for the state, so a clear photo or a distinctive winter track from northern New Mexico’s high country makes a useful record.
Full species profile
