Brush rabbits inhabit the Pacific slope of the mountains from about 1200
feet in the coastal sagebrush belt up to at least 4500 feet in the
chaparral, and are the only lagomorphs found commonly above the lower
edge of the chaparral association. Here they were often on steep slopes
beneath extensive and nearly impenetrable tracts of chaparral.
The ecologic niche of the brush rabbit is in brush where the plants form
continuous thickets with little open ground. In the coastal sagebrush
flats, areas supporting only scattered bushes are uninhabited by brush
rabbits, while areas grown to extensive tracts of brush harbor them.
When the brush rabbit's mode of escape from its enemies is considered,
the reason for their habitat preference becomes more clear. Almost
invariably these rabbits seek escape by running through the densest
portions of the brush, never appearing in the open; in this way they
travel quickly away from the source of danger without being observed.
Because they avoid being seen in the open, and do not seek safety
largely through running ability, they need continuous stretches of brush
for escape. While hunting in the coastal sagebrush belt I have
repeatedly seen frightened brush rabbits turn and dart beneath the
bushes a few feet from a human being rather than be driven into the
open.
A great horned owl shot in March, 1951, in the sage belt, had in its
stomach the remains of a freshly killed adult brush rabbit. Although
coyotes and brush rabbits often occur in the same general sections of
the sage flats, remains of these rabbits have been notably scarce in
coyote feces from these areas. This is probably because the coyote hunts
along clearings and in open brushland, precisely the type of habitat
avoided by brush rabbits.