Black-tailed Jackrabbit
A Western Kansas hare becomes a pair of black-tipped ears, a still body in a shallow form, and finally a flashing black upper tail carried through long open-country bounds.
Artwork inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe
Black-tailed Jackrabbits are hares, not cottontail rabbits. Their very long ears release heat as well as detect danger, and their young are born furred and open-eyed in a shallow ground form rather than helpless in a lined underground nest.
The retreat view is decisive: long legs, black ear tips, and a dark stripe running along the upper tail. Western Kansas shortgrass, fallow fields, and brushy road edges provide context, but distance matters—a forced sprint spends energy and can drive the hare toward traffic.
- Animal type
- A hare whose young are born furred and open-eyed
- Best confirmation
- Black stripe on the upper tail during retreat
- Rest site
- A shallow surface form rather than a burrow
Quick guide
- Scan in cool light
- Search Western Kansas shortgrass for ear tips and body-shaped breaks
- Stop after confirmation
- Use the retreat view once; never pursue another flight photograph
Find a Black-tailed Jackrabbit without turning observation into a chase
- Begin with stillness
- Scan Western Kansas shortgrass, fallow fields, and brush margins at cool dawn or dusk. Look for upright ear tips or a hare-shaped interruption in sparse cover before walking closer.
- Use the first retreat view
- Watch for extremely long black-tipped ears and legs, then confirm the dark stripe along the upper tail. Compare those marks with a cottontail’s shorter ears and bright white tail.
- Read the open-country escape
- Notice long bounds and abrupt zigzags, then stop. Avoid following by foot or vehicle because repeated flight wastes water and energy and can funnel the jackrabbit onto a Kansas road.
- Protect the surface form
- Look at a shallow shaded depression from a distance and leave it intact. Never touch a motionless young hare or assume the absent mother has abandoned it.
Good to know
Compare hare and rabbit development rather than body size alone: a Black-tailed Jackrabbit is born furred, open-eyed, and mobile, while a cottontail newborn begins naked and dependent in a nest.
Notice these
- Black dorsal tail stripe
- Very long black-tipped ears
- Long-legged zigzag retreat
- Shallow resting form