Habitat Dynamics of Lagomorph Species

Lagomorphs, encompassing rabbits, hares and pikas, occupy diverse ecosystems from temperate forests to alpine meadows and arid steppes. Their persistence depends on the availability, quality and spatial arrangement of resources such as forage, shelter and breeding sites. Early successional habitats—characterised by dense shrubs and regenerating vegetation—often support high densities, reflecting the need for both cover and nutritional diversity. Landscape fragmentation by agriculture, urban development or forestry operations can disrupt dispersal corridors, reduce gene flow and increase exposure to predators and climatic extremes. Interspecific competition and the presence of non-native congeners further influence habitat use, sometimes displacing native species from optimal microhabitats. Recent advances in habitat suitability modelling, landscape genetics and remote sensing have refined our understanding of patch connectivity and the structural attributes that underpin viable populations. These insights inform conservation and management practices worldwide, guiding restoration of functional mosaics, the design of stepping-stone networks and the mitigation of anthropogenic impacts on lagomorph biodiversity.

Research from Nature Portfolio

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Habitat Dynamics of Lagomorph Species publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in habitat dynamics of lagomorph species across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Early successional habitat: vegetation stage following disturbance, characterised by herbaceous plants and dense shrub cover.

Habitat fragmentation: process by which continuous habitats are divided into smaller, isolated patches.

Habitat suitability model: computational framework that predicts the distribution or quality of habitat based on environmental variables.

Niche overlap: extent to which different species share similar environmental conditions or resources.

Ecological trap: situation where organisms preferentially select poor-quality habitats, leading to reduced fitness.

Landscape connectivity: degree to which the landscape enables movement and gene flow among habitat patches.

References

1. High Overlap in Niches and Suitable Habitat Between an Imperiled and Introduced Cottontail. Ecology and Evolution (2025).
2. Characterization of daytime resting sites of New England and eastern cottontails. Mammal Research (2025).
3. Is conservation based on best available science creating an ecological trap for an imperiled lagomorph?. Ecology and Evolution (2020).