Mammals crepuscular

Black-tailed Jackrabbit

Lepus californicus

The ultimate desert athlete, the Black-tailed Jackrabbit is a marvel of evolution, featuring oversized ears for cooling and powerful legs built for 40-mph sprints. Witness the high-speed drama of the American West right from your backyard camera.

1 Sightings

1 Habitats

Quick Identification

straighten

Size

Length: 18–24 inches (46–61 cm); Weight: 3–6 lbs (1.4–2.7 kg); Ear length: 4–7 inches (10–18 cm)

palette

Colors

Grizzled agouti fur (tan, gray, and black) on the back with creamy white underparts; distinctive black tips on the ears and a black stripe extending from the rump to the top of the tail.

visibility

Key Features

Extraordinarily large ears with black-fringed tips
Long, powerful hind legs designed for high-speed leaping
Distinctive black dorsal stripe on the tail
Large, amber-colored eyes positioned for 360-degree surveillance

When You’ll See Them

schedule

Activity pattern crepuscular

brightness_5

Peak hours 5:00 AM – 8:00 AM and 6:00 PM – 10:00 PM

calendar_month

Season Year-round, with increased visibility during spring breeding seasons.

restaurant

Diet A generalist herbivore that consumes a wide variety of grasses, forbs, and woody shrubs like sagebrush and greasewood. In arid conditions, they frequently eat cacti for their moisture content.

park

Habitat Open landscapes including desert scrub, prairies, sagebrush flats, and suburban edges with low-growing vegetation.

bar_chart
Loading activity data...

Behavior

The Black-tailed Jackrabbit is not actually a rabbit but a hare, distinguished by its large size and the fact that its young are born fully furred and ready to run. These desert speedsters are famous for their incredible athleticism, capable of reaching speeds up to 40 mph and leaping distances of over 10 feet in a single bound. To evade predators like coyotes and hawks, they use a zig-zag running pattern that makes them nearly impossible to track mid-sprint.

While they are largely solitary, you might see them congregating in small groups where food is abundant. They spend much of the hottest part of the day resting in shallow depressions called 'forms' under the shade of shrubs, using their massive ears as radiators to dissipate body heat. In residential areas, they are generally shy but can become accustomed to human presence if there is a reliable source of native vegetation or water.

photo_camera EverydayEarth exclusive

Camera Tips

To capture high-quality footage of a Black-tailed Jackrabbit, camera placement is everything. Since these hares use the same 'runways' or paths through the brush day after day, look for worn tracks or scat in open areas near the base of large shrubs. Mount your camera low to the ground—ideally between 6 to 12 inches high—and angle it slightly upward. This 'rabbit's-eye view' not only captures their full profile but also highlights those iconic, towering ears against the sky.

Trigger speed is your biggest challenge with this species. Because they can move so quickly, a slow camera might only capture a blurry tail or an empty frame. Use a camera with a trigger speed of 0.3 seconds or faster. If your camera supports it, enable 'Hybrid Mode' to capture a high-resolution still image followed immediately by a 15-20 second video clip. This ensures you get a sharp identification photo even if the animal sprints during the video recording.

While many backyard animals are unfazed by infrared flashes, Jackrabbits are high-strung and can be spooked by 'low-glow' LEDs (which emit a faint red glow). If you want to see their natural, relaxed behavior at night, a 'no-glow' or 'black IR' camera is highly recommended. Set your PIR (motion) sensitivity to high, as their lean bodies don't always give off as much heat as a larger mammal like a deer.

In drier climates, the best 'lure' isn't food—it's water. A ground-level birdbath or a simple shallow dish of water placed in front of your camera will act as a magnet for Jackrabbits during the summer months. Position the camera about 6-8 feet away from the water source to ensure the animal is fully in the frame. If you are monitoring a garden, place the camera near the edge of a fence line where they often pause before entering a new area.

Similar Species

Species that look similar or are commonly confused with Black-tailed Jackrabbit.

Desert Cottontail

Much smaller with shorter ears and a fluffy white underside to the tail; lacks the black ear tips and tail stripe.

White-tailed Jackrabbit

Larger and heavier, with a tail that is entirely white or very pale, lacking the black top stripe.

Antelope Jackrabbit

Found in more limited southern ranges; has even larger ears and white-edged sides that it can 'flash' when running.

Frequently Asked Questions

Black-tailed Jackrabbits are crepuscular, meaning they are most active during the twilight hours of dawn and dusk. This timing helps them avoid the midday desert heat and stay hidden from many daytime predators.

The best way to attract Black-tailed Jackrabbits is to provide native desert landscaping, such as sagebrush or prickly pear, and a consistent ground-level water source. They prefer open areas with some low-growing shrubs for cover.

They are generalist herbivores. Their diet consists of various grasses and wildflowers in the summer, shifting to tougher woody plants, bark, and even cacti during the winter or dry periods to stay hydrated.

Yes, they are quite common in suburban areas that border open desert or grassland. They often move into residential yards to feed on lush lawns or ornamental plants when natural food sources are scarce.

The easiest way to tell them apart is the ears and size. Black-tailed Jackrabbits are much larger (nearly double the size) with ears that are disproportionately huge. Additionally, Jackrabbits have a black stripe on the top of their tail, whereas cottontails have a puffy white 'cotton' tail.

Record Black-tailed Jackrabbit at your habitat

Connect a camera to start building your own species record — AI identifies every visitor automatically.

Join free Identify a photo