Roadless Areas
Home/Species/ European Rabbit

Oryctolagus cuniculus

(Linnaeus, 1758)

European Rabbit

G5Secure Found in 16 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
EndangeredIUCN
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.101000
Element CodeAMAEB02010
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNEndangered
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassMammalia
OrderLagomorpha
FamilyLeporidae
GenusOryctolagus
Other Common Names
Conejo Doméstico (ES) Lapin de garenne (FR)
Concept Reference
Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.
Conservation Status
Rank MethodExpertise without calculation
Review Date2016-04-04
Change Date1996-11-05
Range Extent Comments
Apparently native throughout southwestern Europe and northwestern Africa. Introduced to many other regions including: Great Britian; Ukraine; New Zealand; Australia; South America; islands of the central Pacific Ocean (Hawaii: presently on Manana and Lehua); and North America.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Primarily found in short grasses, agricultural pastures, and scrub areas. Digs extensive burrow systems. Young are born in underground burrows in nests lined with vegetation and the mother's belly fur.

Ecology

Gregarious. "Warrens" (extensive burrow systems with many entrances) may occupy an area of more than 1 hectare. Predators include domestic cats, foxes, weasels, etc.

Reproduction

Main part of mating season occurs January-June. Gestation lasts 28-33 days. Females give birth to 3-9 young; as many as 6 litters per year. On island in Hawaii, productivity is low: average of 6.6 young/adult female/year (Dixon 1973).
Terrestrial Habitats
Shrubland/chaparralGrassland/herbaceousOld fieldCropland/hedgerow
Other Nations (2)
United StatesNNA
ProvinceRankNative
NebraskaSNANo
MassachusettsSNANo
MontanaSNANo
New JerseySNANo
WashingtonSNANo
CanadaNNA
ProvinceRankNative
British ColumbiaSNANo
Roadless Areas (16)
Alaska (4)
AreaForestAcres
Boston BarChugach National Forest53,617
College FiordChugach National Forest1,130,818
Fidalgo-GravinaChugach National Forest257,968
MadanTongass National Forest68,553
Montana (3)
AreaForestAcres
Cabinet Face East #671Kootenai National Forest50,326
HoodooLolo National Forest105,162
Selway - Bitterroot (01067)Bitterroot National Forest114,953
Nevada (1)
AreaForestAcres
Snake - Peacock CynHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest1,069
Utah (4)
AreaForestAcres
418024Uinta National Forest51,699
Mt. AireWasatch-Cache National Forest9,681
North FrancisWasatch-Cache National Forest8,148
Stansbury MountainsWasatch-Cache National Forest39,696
Virginia (1)
AreaForestAcres
Seng MountainJefferson National Forest6,428
Washington (3)
AreaForestAcres
Madison CreekOlympic National Forest1,223
Mt. Baker MaMt Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest24,847
Mt. Baker Noisy - DiobsudMt Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest56,039
References (12)
  1. American Society of Mammalogists (ASM). 2025. Mammal Diversity Database (Version 1.13) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10595931. Online. Available: https://www.mammaldiversity.org/
  2. Bradley, R.D., L.K. Ammerman, R.J. Baker, L.C. Bradley, J.A. Cook. R.C. Dowler, C. Jones, D.J. Schmidly, F.B. Stangl Jr., R.A. Van den Bussche and B. Würsig. 2014. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 2014. Museum of Texas Tech University Occasional Papers 327:1-28. Available at: http://www.nsrl.ttu.edu/publications/opapers/ops/OP327.pdf
  3. Brown, W. Y. 1974. Rabbit destruction of tern eggs. Auk 91:840-841.
  4. Dixon, J. D. 1973. Natural history of a small insular population of rabbits, <i>Oryctolagus cuniculus</i> (L.), in Hawaii. M.S. thesis No. 1146, Univ. Hawaii. 87 pp.
  5. Hawaii Ecosystems at Risk Project. 2005. Information index for selected alien vertebrates in Hawaii. Internet resource available at http://www.hear.org/alienspeciesinhawaii/InfoIndexVertebrates.htm. Downloaded 31 March 2005.
  6. Kramer, R. J. 1971. Hawaiian land mammals. Charles E. Tuttle Co., Inc., Rutland, Vermont, and Tokyo, Japan. 347 pp.
  7. Lever, C. 1985. Naturalized mammals of the world. Longman Group Limited, England.
  8. Tomich, P. Q. 1986. Mammals in Hawai'i. A synopsis and notational bibliography. Second edition. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 375 pp.
  9. Walker, E.P. 1964. Mammals of the World, Vol. I and II. The Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore.
  10. Warner, R. E. 1963. Recent history and ecology of the Laysan duck. Condor 65:2-23.
  11. Whitaker, J. O., Jr. 1996. National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mammals. Alfred A. Knopf, New York, USA. 937 pp.
  12. Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.