If a rabbit comes to Fremont county, he'd better pack a lunch.

[bilmac]

Went out to shoot a rabbit for supper tomorrow. Now shootin rabbits has been one of my favorite things to do since I was a kid which means many years and many  many rabbits. But today was the first time I ever looked around and decided that if I was gonna find one I was gonna have to look where there was something for them to eat. We have had varying degrees of drought here for 8 - 10 years now, so a lot of our grassland is becoming halogeton, a poisenous weed. This year, it didn't rain all summer, and to top it off we had a grasshopper invasion,  "of Biblical proportions". I finally found a ridgeline where rocks had probably trapped some moisture, and some grass grew and there were some tracks in the snow, so I got supper.  But I never thought I would have to look around for enough foreage to feed the rabbits

[SQUACKS]

i do believe here in Il. that there are more deer in most places than rabbits. It's not because of feed but it is because of cover. a Rabbit can't make it with as many predators as we have and not have really good cover to survive in.

 Row crop farming ended the cover part. plowed fields through the winter leave no cover at all or food for that matter. There is a hawk every half mile on a fence post and coyotes runnin everyplace.

 Rabbits are an endangered specie here. there just aint enough money in rabbit hunting that the dnr is going to spend their money on much habitat.

             

[Sarge]

No rabbits in SE KS either. I see bobcats in broad daylight and coyotes and hawks everywhere. I really enjoy rabbit hunting, but haven't hunted them for 10 years.

[thejanitor]

We have some snow shoe hare and some cotton tail here in Northern MN this year. But I do find they tend to cycle up and down like the grouse populations. Found a spot while deer hunting that we will snow shoe into this month and take some home. May take the muzzle loaders for a walk...    thejanitor

[Range Rider]

Here in SW Wyoming we have a big crop of western cotton tails or dog rabbits.  The long drought of 10 years passed into a very wet period the past two years.  The deer, moose and Antelope and small game has come back very fast.  I like to hunt rabbits with a period correct NC flint lock .40 cal "Poor Boy' rifle.  The end of a cold day shoot'in rabbits is great.  I like to pour a double shot of Wild Turkey 101, while I fry up some critters cook up some bak'in powder biscuits and white pork sausage gravy.

RR

[Mohawk]

Habitat and cover are main causes I think. How many centuries were predators no trapped and the cottontail survived? But, in centuries past, their habitat was not abolished. Go to the high desert of the western cottontail and you will see plenty...... But there is no farming. I counted over 20 from the side of the road between Carlsbad NM and the Nat. Forest 7 miles north. They are there but they just moved. When you eliminate cover you eliminate the population. Take away power lines for hawks and you will probably see a problem with them too since trees got the axe too with farm habitat developement.  In short, get away from developement and farms and you should find rabbits.

[bilmac]

RR  Wait till the wolves make it to your part of the world and your big game abundance will go away. I had a moose license east of Pinedale this year and couldn't find one. Just a few years ago they were all over. Glad to hear the western mountain states are finally getting together to at least make some noise about this nonsense.

[351 power]

amazing thing about this thread to me is the variety/changes that are evident. a long drought for us would be 30 days. and wolves moving in would be tough on our area but bears are exploding population for us. rabbits are mostly coyote suppers

[bilmac]

In the Bible one of the things that plague mankind in the end are wild beasts. As lately as a few years ago I just thought that they were probably a symbol for something else. If the world were depopulated by some of these other plagues, I can see how quickly large predators can take advantage. This is all the more awsome to consider because in our part of the world at least these "wild beasts" were brought back by man's own arrogance and stupidity.

[S.S.]

Very Seldom see rabbits in west georgia either,or quail.
Fire ants kill the young in the nests.