Idyllic Chick

We got back from Jacksonville pretty late last night, well after darkness had fallen. Our entry into the driveway disturbed a couple of rabbits in the yard. This wasn't unusual, especially this time of the year. I <3 teh bunnies. They make me happy. What was unusual is that we disturbed a third bunny in the front yard. A three bunny night! I think that's a record. When we walked down the sidewalk towards the side door of the house I noticed that there was a small hole in the ground where the third bunny had been hanging out. Lots of dirt strewn about and such. Messy bunny! Right in the middle of where Chris had planted our new grass. Oh well. I'll fill it in in the morning.

We left to go pick the dogs up from Doggie Camp. Upon our return Third Bunny was right where she had been earlier. Digging in that hole. Bad bunneh! We knew that Monty would chase her through the swamp if he saw her, and we practically had to run her off ourselves. We got Monty on the leash and into the house with no problem. Went to bed. Slept well and good.

This morning Chris told me that the hole the bunny had been working on was now covered up. Strange. The kind of rabbits that live on our property don't even dig burroughs. They live in the swamp under bushes and piles of fallen trees and such. So there's no reason for this bunny to be digging, let alone cleaning up her work as well. Or so I thought.

Googling "rabbit hole fill" brought me few results, most of them dealing with attempts to keep ones domesticated pet rabbit from digging up ones carpet. But it did lead me to my next key word: nest. Using "cottontail nest" I found the following information: A typical cottontail nest is a shallow scrape in the ground, covered with fur and grass, often in the middle of a lawn.
Ok, this thing is right in the middle of our new little patch of grass. Looking at it from our front window it appears that the hole has been filled in with the dirt that came out of it. But this morning I walked out with my camera to spy this:



This is a bunneh nest! Third Bunny will only visit the nest at dusk and before dawn to feed the babies, then they will be out on their own in three to four weeks. Every couple of days I'll place a twig or some yarn across the nest to make sure momma is taking care of teh babyz. She should uncover the nest, feed the little ones, then cover the nest and leave for the day. While I want to see teeny tiny bunnies very much, I don't want to take the chance of Third Bunny knowing that I've been messing with her nestlings, so I'll try to control myself for at least a week. Then perhaps there will be little bunneh pictures!

Labels: Flora and Fauna