Diets of Black-Tailed Jack Rabbits in Relation to Population Density and Vegetation
- 1 January 1984
- journal article
- research article
- Published by JSTOR in Journal of Range Management
- Vol. 37 (1) , 79-83
- https://doi.org/10.2307/3898830
Abstract
Diets of black-tailed jack rabbits (L. californicus) and composition of plant communities were compared among habitats that supported different densities of jack rabbits in sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata)/perennial grass communities on the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) in southeastern Idaho. Diets were more similar than vegetation among areas, indicating that jack rabbits feed selectively; winterfat (Ceratoides lanata) and perennial grasses were staple foods, comprising about 80% of the diet in all areas. Jack rabbit densities were higher in areas having higher proportions of grass cover. Similarity between diet and vegetation was positively correlated with jack rabbit density and with the amount of grass-dominated areas for feeding at night and then fed as generalists on the grass species present.This publication has 10 references indexed in Scilit:
- Black-Tailed Jackrabbit Diet and Density on Rangeland and near Agricultural CropsJournal of Range Management, 1980
- Foods of Primary Consumers on Cold Desert Shrub-Steppe of Southcentral IdahoJournal of Range Management, 1979
- What are the Biological Bases of Varied Diets?The American Naturalist, 1978
- Water, Electrolyte, and Nitrogen Budgets of Jackrabbits (Lepus californicus) in the Mojave DesertPhysiological Zoology, 1976
- Consumption of Forage by Black-Tailed Jackrabbits on Salt-Desert Ranges of UtahThe Journal of Wildlife Management, 1966
- Food Habits of Black-Tailed Jack Rabbits in Southern NevadaJournal of Mammalogy, 1966
- The Relationship of Precipitation and Black‐Tailed Jack Rabbit Populations in KansasEcology, 1959
- Ecology of the Great Salt Lake Desert: I. An Annual Cycle of the Desert JackrabbitEcology, 1955
- Biotic Communities of the Northern Desert Shrub Biome in Western UtahEcological Monographs, 1946
- The Distribution of Rodents in Overgazed and Normal Grasslands of Central OklahomaEcology, 1936