Amami rabbit

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Amami rabbit[1]

Taxidermy specimen of Amami Rabbit at

the National Museum of Nature and

Science in Tokyo, Japan.

Conservation status

Endangered (IUCN 3.1)[2]

Scientific classification

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Lagomorpha

Family: Leporidae

Genus: Pentalagus
 Lyon, 1904

Species: P. furnessi

Binomial name

Pentalagus furnessi
(Stone, 1900)

Amami rabbit range

The Amami rabbit (Pentalagus furnessi; Amami: [ʔosaɡi]), or Amamino kuro usagi (アマミノクロウ
サギ 奄美野黒兔, lit. "Amami wild black rabbit"), also known as the Ryukyu rabbit, is a primitive,
dark-furred rabbit which is only found in Amami Ōshima and Toku-no-Shima, two small islands
between southern Kyūshū and Okinawa in Kagoshima Prefecture (but actually closer to Okinawa)
in Japan. Often called a living fossil, the Amami rabbit is a living remnant of ancient rabbits that once
lived on the Asian mainland, where they died out, remaining only on the two small Japanese islands
where they live today.[3]

Contents
[hide]

 1Biology
o 1.1Diet
o 1.2Morphology
o 1.3Distribution and habitat
o 1.4Behavior
 2Endangered species
o 2.1Threats
o 2.2Conservation
 3See also
 4References
 5External links

Biology[edit]
Diet[edit]
The amami rabbit feeds on over 29 species of plants, which incorporates 17 species of shrubs and
12 species of herbaceous plants, consuming mostly the sprouts, young shoots and acorns .[4] It also
eats nuts and cambium of a wide variety of plant species.[5] It is observed that the amami rabbit also
feeds on the bark of stems and twigs of shrub plants.[5]During summer, the amami rabbit primarily
feeds on pampas grass, and during winter, they primarily eat the acorns of the pasania tree.[6]
Morphology[edit]
The Amami rabbit has short feet and hind legs, a somewhat bulky body, and rather large and curved
claws used for digging and sometimes climbing.[7] Its ears are significantly smaller compared to those
of other hares or rabbits.[8] The pelage is thick, wooly and dark, brown on top and becomes more
reddish-brown on the sides.[9] It has heavy, long and very strong claws, being nearly straight on the
forefeet and curved on the hindfeet [9] The eyes are also small compared to more common rabbits
and hares. The average weight is 2.5–2.8 kg.[10]
Distribution and habitat[edit]
The ideal habitat for these rabbits is in an area between mature and young forests.[11] They use the
dense mature forests as protection and for the presence of pampas grass, in the summer,
and acorns, in the winter, for their diets.[12] They also use the high density of perennial grasses and
herbaceous ground cover in the young forests for their diets during different times of the
year.[13][14] Therefore, the best habitat for them to live in is where they have easy access to both
young and mature forests with no obstructions between the two forest types.[15]
Using fecal pellet counts and resident surveys, the number of rabbits is estimated at 2000–4800 left
on Amami Island and 120–300 left on Tokuno Island.[11]
Behavior[edit]
This species is a nocturnal forest-dweller that reproduces once in late March–May and once in
September–December, having one or two young each time.[13] During the day, the mother digs a hole
in the ground, for her young to hide in. At night, she opens the entrance to the hole, while watching
for predators (such as venomous snakes), and then nurses her young, after which she closes the
hole with soil and plant material by thumping on it with her front paws.[16] Amami rabbits sleep during
the day in hidden locations, such as caves.[17] They are also noted for having a call similar to that of
a pika.[10]

Endangered species[edit]
Threats[edit]
Before 1921, hunting and trapping were another cause of decline in population numbers. In 1921,
Japan declared the Amami rabbit a "natural monument" which prevented it from being
hunted.[9] Then in 1963, it was changed to a "special natural monument" which prevented it from
being trapped as well.[15]
Habitat destruction, such as forest clearing for commercial logging, agriculture space, and residential
areas, is the most detrimental activity on the distribution of these rabbits.[18] Since they prefer a
habitat of both mature and young forests, they do not thrive in only mature forests untouched by
destruction, yet they do not thrive in newly growing forests alone, either.[15] There are plans to
remove current habitat for these rabbits for the construction of golf courses and resorts, which is
allowed because it will not directly be killing the rabbit, just changing the environment where it
dwells, which is legal even under the protection of the special natural monument status.[19]
The Amami rabbit also faces huge threats from the invasive predators, being a major cause for the
decline in population size.[13] On the island of Amami, the small Indian mongoose (Herpestes
javanicus) was released to control the population of a local venomous snake, and its numbers have
increased dramatically.[20] This mongoose, along with feral cats and dogs, are outpreying the Amami
rabbit.[15]
Conservation[edit]
In July 2008, the Amami Rangers for nature conservation obtained a photograph of a feral cat
carrying a rabbit corpse (rabbit bones and fur found in cat or dog droppings had already been
found), prompting discussions on better ways to control pets.[16] A small area of the Amami Island
has the Amami Gunto Quasi-National Park that further protects the population.[21] Some attempt at
habitat restoration has been made, but the Amami rabbit needs a mosaic of mature and young forest
in close proximity, and when a young forest is regrown nowhere near a mature forest, this rabbit is
not likely to inhabit it.[16] Research and population monitoring also is underway to try to keep the
numbers from declining, even if they can not be increased.[15]
Suggested conservation work for the future includes habitat restoration and predator population
control. A healthy balance of mature and young forests still exists on the southern end of Amami, so
that area should be protected. Restricting logging would also help to keep more forest available for
the rabbits to live in by leaving more forest standing, as well as disturbing the surrounding
environment more.[7] An end to the building of forest roads used for logging and travel would further
protect the amami rabbit, as they cause population and habitat fragmentation, destroys their prime
habitat and allows predators easier access to the middle of forests where a majority of the rabbit
population exists.[13] Controlling the populations of mongooses, feral dogs, and feral cats is another
approach that could help bolster the rabbit population.[7]Eradication of the mongooses and feral cats
and dogs is needed, as well as better control of pets by local island residents.[15]
The Lagomorph Specialist Group of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and
Natural Resources proposed a plan of conservation in 1990.[7] In Amami-Oshima Island, the Amami
Wildlife Conservation Center of the Ministry of the Environment was established in 1999.[9] It
restarted a mongoose eradication program in 2005 and designated the Amami rabbit as endangered
in 2004 for Japan.[10]