Prairie Notes #221 - Rabbits I Have Known
Prairie Notes are monthly photo/journal observations from Tandy Hills Natural Area by Founder/Director, Don Young. They include field reports, flora and fauna sightings, and more, mixed with a scoop of dry humor and a bit of philosophy.
They are available free to all who get on the FOTHNA email list.
Rabbits I Have Known
Prairie Notes #221
May 1, 2025
1) Rabbits I Have Known
2) Field Report - April
3) New Species Report - April
4) A Modest Act of Subversion
5) Newsworthy & Noteworthy
6) PrairieSky / StarParty Report
7) Prairie Proverb - Richard Adams
Cottontail Rabbit’s (Sylvilagus floridanus) are one of only 8 native mammal species found at Tandy Hills.
1) Rabbits I Have Known
There is something about rabbits that turns me on. I’m not alone in this. It’s hard to resist something so cute, cuddly, mysterious and fast. Many of us were probably indoctrinated as children to like rabbits, especially, city-slickers. They are uncommon enough to always be a surprise but always a thrill to see in the wild, especially, in the spring.
There have only been 22 observations of Eastern Cottontail Rabbits (Sylvilagus floridanus) recorded on the iNaturalist website page for Tandy Hills. About half of those were by me but I have been lucky enough to have seen them many more times over the years. I would say that rabbits are a totem animal of mine.
As a young man in the early 70’s, I read author, Richard Adam’s remarkable (and controversial) adventure tale, Watership Down. A few years later I was equally enamored by the animated film of the same name. Despite its old school, Disney-like animation, it is NOT a children’s movie any more than the book is. Its themes of environmentalism and human’s impact on the environment are dark. Its other big themes of political oppression, violence, spirituality, religion and mortality remain timely.
In 2009, I spotted a Cottontail munching on the grass at Tandy Hills, just across from our house. The next day when starting up my electric lawnmower a herd of Cottontail Rabbit kits (known in Canada as a fluffle) scattered across our yard. One ended up on the porch where I retrieved it and returned it to the herd. Ever since then we have had rabbits in our yard.
While hiking the hills, I have run across rabbits many dozens of times. Unless I inadvertently surprise them, they tend to stay put, munching on wildflowers and grasses, allowing me to chat with them. Sometimes I see them waiting for me up ahead on the trail. At other times, I see them eyeing me as they attempt to hide in the tall grasses. I see their footprints in the snow every winter. Just when think the coyotes or dogs have wiped them out they always turn up, year after year. Even as more and more human visitors invade their native habitat, they are thriving, as long as they avoid the street, that is.
There is a character in the book and film named Fiver. He has an uncanny sense of foresight, warning the other rabbits of impending doom coming to the warren. (Sometimes I feel like Fiver when I see hundreds of people descend on and trample the meadows to get photos of . . . themselves.) On the other hand, there are themes of spirituality and religion that offer hope. In the book and film, The Great Frith, is a god-like entity that gives rabbits a white tail and strong legs to help them stay ahead of predators.
If you see a rabbit while hiking at Tandy Hills, consider yourself lucky. Take the time to notice their beautiful fur, their bright eyes, exquisite camouflage and speed. And thank The Great Frith for keeping them safe.
> CLICK on each image below to see it un-cropped and with captions.
> Thanks for reading Prairie Notes and supporting Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area. Your donations are welcome HERE.
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This unusual looking, Ten-petal Anemone I found after the prescribed burn reminded me of the animated symbol of The Great Frith, the mythological God of the Rabbits, in the film, Watership Down.
2) Field Report - April
As expected, spring fully sprung from the burned meadows in April. It was not exactly as I had hoped. The Purple Paintbrush (Castilleja purpuea) were few and faded quickly, but still, It was fun watching the meadows turn from brown dirt to a parade of colorful native species. Every year there is one species that seems to dominate the prairies. This year it’s the bright yellow, Stiff Greenthread (Thelesperma filifolium) which combines nicely with the purple, Engelmann’s Sage (Salvia engelmannii). The pollinators followed one by one until our Garden of Eden was fully retuned to its Iconic nature. The 10th annual City Nature Challenge, that happened April 15 - 28, brought lots of naturalists to Tandy Hills. Read more about that in #5, below.
The Iconic Meadow: Multiple species all blooming at once. Pollinators took the bait.
All four shades of Palmleaf Winecup (Callirhoe pedata) are blooming at Tandy Hills.
Purple Paintbrush (possibly a hybrid) and Engelmann’s Sage looking rather picturesque.
Check out this video from Fort Worth, drone-meister, Brian Luenser taken on April 29th.
3) New Species - April
Thanks to the 10th annual, City Nature Challenge (CNC), there were a lot of folks documenting species in April. Sam Kieschnick and a group of Master Naturalists converged on the hills on April 28th to do some moth-ing on the last day of CNC. Some very cool moths and other bugs were found. We ended the month of April with 65 new species bringing the new total to 2,358 species.
See all of them at the Tandy Hills iNat Project Page HERE.
4) A modest Act of Subversion
Hope springs eternal ! Just when I was reaching my boiling point with the out-of-control photographer problem, a 25 year-old resident of View Street and frequent visitor to Tandy Hills has come up with a new angle to keep the prairie vandalism in check.
Chalk.
Most of the hundreds of portrait photographers enter Tandy Hills from 3400 View Street. A sidewalk leads them to the view they crave: The cityscape in the west surrounded by a sea of wildflowers. The area has been hit hard by, illegal braided trails, trash, meadow trampling, wildflower plucking, horses, ATV’s, etc, etc. Signs are posted but are mostly ignored. Prairie Rangers are our best hope but still on the wish list from the City.
Enter, Alexis Jackson and a few pals, whose rainbow-colored messages in chalk will greet photographers and their clients as they walk by. Their messages such as, Leave No Trace; Stay On Trail; Please Don’t Pick the Wildflowers can’t be missed. Alexis is even making this a regular gig, inviting others to join in to help raise awareness of this problem. Check out the flyer she created and posted on social media to recruit more help.
Alexis is the daughter of FWISD Board Trustee, Tobi Jackson. She is rightly proud of Alexis. So are we.
5) Newsworthy & Noteworthy
>>>>>>> Thank you’s are in order to, Suzanne Tuttle, Robbie Crawford, Donna Piercy, Fonda Fox, Kate Morgan and Cindy Paquette, all members of Cross Timbers Master Naturalists, for a heroic job cleaning up at Tandy Hills on April 11th.
>>>>>>> Move over Monarch’s. Painted Ladies are a migratory marvel, too. This free NY Times essay tells the amazing story of these butterflies that are common in north Texas. Read the full story HERE.
>>>>>>> Some VERY good Friends of Tandy Hills came to its aid on Easter Sunday, April 20th. We put out a call for Meadow Monitors to help explain the rules to portrait photographers. Marcie Delgado & family, John MacFarlane and Gale McCrary responded by helping keep photographers on trail and following the rules. We are VERY grateful for their time and patience. It made a difference.
>>>>>>> On April 22nd, the City of Fort Worth Mayor and Council recognized volunteers from across the city. Friends of Tandy Hills was represented by 7 of our core team although we have many more volunteers to thank. Pictured are, Kate Morgan, Suzanne Tuttle, Cindy Paquette, Don & Debora Young, Jim Marshall and Cody McCoy. Click on photos to see them un-cropped.
>>>>>>> April 26th was Texas Wildflower Day (TWD). Everybody knows that Tandy Hills is a wildflower paradise, but we should also remember just how rare and important that is. Other prairies have not been as lucky or had a group of concerned citizens to care for them. For example, there were once vast prairie wildflower meadows where South Hulen Street is today. The only thing remaining of them is this ironic street sign. For more info about TWD, visit the Native Plant Society of Texas.
>>>>>>> The 10th annual City Nature Challenge, took place from April 25 - 28. It brought lots of naturalists to Tandy Hills. Sam Kieschnick brought his A-Team of naturalists and spent the evening of April 27th moth-ing at Tandy Hills. It takes time to upload all the images collected, but at press time they had found 65 new species, mostly moths. Prior to the moth-ing, they and many others documented hundreds of plant species as part of the City Nature Challenge. The DFW region was holding on to 7th place, WORLDWIDE, as the counting continues through early May.
6) Prairie Sky / Star Party report
The star party was rained out again in April. That’s always a possibility in the spring. The next star party is May 3rd. See the full schedule on the website HERE. Come out and see the night sky and visit with members of the Fort Worth Astronomical Society (FWAS). 2025 is their 10th straight year at Tandy Hills.
Here is the sky-watching commentary for May from FWAS rep, John McCrea:
“ For our May 3rd, 2025, FWAS/Tandy Hills star party, we will have our familiar spring constellations. The most popular can be seen in the night sky from about late March to late June. Although there are about fifteen springtime constellations visible in the Northern Hemisphere, seven prominent constellations stand out and are generally associated with springtime. These include Ursa Major, Boötes, Cancer, Leo, Coma Berenices, Virgo, and Hydra.
The sun will set at 8:12 PM on May 3rd. The moon will be a 6.9-day old waxing crescent in the Constellation Cancer (the crab). Mars and Jupiter will be the only visible planets tonight. Mars will be around most of the night, but Jupiter sets at 11:12 PM.
With any luck we may be able to see the Ω-Centauri globular cluster. It will be 5 degrees higher than Canopus was in March. It will be at 166O compass heading (southeast) or RA 13hr 26’, Dec -47O 40’.
On this day in astronomical history:
* The Castlerigg stone circles in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, dating back to 3000 BC, have an astronomical alignment for May 1st sunrise to mark the occasion of Beltain. This was the start of summer in Great Britain. and is still Celebrated as May Day. “
* “Echoes of the ancient skies” by Dr. E. C. Krupp”
7) Prairie Proverb - Richard Adams
“All the world will be your enemy, Prince with a Thousand Enemies. And whenever they catch you, they will kill you. But first, they must catch you...””
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Prairie Notes© is the official newsletter of Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. All content by Don Young except where otherwise noted.
