File:The American Museum journal (c1900-(1918)) (17539652653).jpg

Title: The American Museum journal
Identifier: americanmuseumjo17amer (find matches)
Year: c1900-(1918) (c190s)
Authors: American Museum of Natural History
Subjects: Natural history
Publisher: New York : American Museum of Natural History
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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The Jack Rabbit in California By M A K Y CYNTHIA D I I' K E K S O X Illustrations from photographs by the Aiitlior This brief study of the developing jack rabbit was written in California, at Stanford University, from notes accumulated during the daily care and observation of a pair of young rabbits, from the time of their birth, February 26, until they were three months old. During the first six weeks of this period they took kindly to a diet of cow's milk administered through a small opening in a pipette rubber attached to a small vial, as I had found by previous experience other young mammals will do—skunks, wood- chucks, cottontail rabbits. As far as known, nothing has been published heretofore on this development of the jack rabbit. The interest lies especially in observations made on their developing instincts—namely, that certain actions, such as washing the face, are not learned by imitation of the parent or through ex- perience, but are instinctive from the moment of birth ; that a generalized fear instinct arises soon after birth and becomes specific through experience, a valuable safeguard for the race in its definite environ- ment; and that the play instinct develops those activities —digging, listening, leaping, running, nest building—which are to prove necessary for the life of the adult.—The Author. THE snow was still on the mountains of the Coast Range but the foothills were green, buttercups and mustard were beginning to make the fields yellow, and an occasional poppy of the hosts to appear later was showing along the road- side or in the oat field—in other words, it was February in the Santa Clara Valley. I had been tramping the foothills, where the most conspicuous evidence of life is fur- nished by the jack rabbit. Now and again the gray forms had started up from the shelter of rocks or small bushes, or some- times had appeared suddenly as if material- ized from empty air, to speed away with incredible swiftness. Now I was at my desk in the University laboratory, my back to the window with its view of mountains and foothills. Suddenly there was shouting, and a rush of feet on the campus outside. Three laborers were chas- ing and stoning a jack rabbit. Soon they had it cornered in an angle of the buildings and were about to use a club. It was the 71

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