Wild rabbits are obligate herbivores, relying entirely on plant matter. Their diet is specialized, providing nutrients and fiber for their unique digestive system. Understanding their natural food sources helps explain how these animals thrive.
The Natural Diet of Wild Rabbits
The primary component of a wild rabbit’s diet is various grasses, such as wheatgrass, meadow grass, fescue, bluegrass, orchard grass, and timothy. These fibrous plants form the bulk of their daily intake, providing essential roughage for digestive health. Wild rabbits also forage for various wild plants and herbs, including common species like clover, dandelions, chickweed, and nettle.
Beyond ground-level vegetation, their diet includes leaves and tender shoots from shrubs and young trees. During colder months or when other food sources are scarce, rabbits also consume twigs and bark from trees like willow, apple, birch, maple, and cottonwood. This diverse plant consumption ensures they receive a broad spectrum of vitamins and minerals.
Seasonal Adaptations in Diet
A wild rabbit’s diet shifts considerably throughout the year, adapting to vegetation availability. During spring and summer, when fresh growth is abundant, their diet primarily consists of lush grasses, clovers, wildflowers, and tender new shoots. This period offers a rich supply of easily digestible, nutrient-dense plant material.
As autumn arrives and fresh vegetation begins to decline, rabbits pivot their foraging efforts towards fallen leaves, seeds, and roots. This adaptation allows them to utilize the last of the year’s growth before winter sets in. In the harsh winter months, when plant life is sparse, their diet becomes more reliant on woody materials such as bark, twigs, and dried grasses. They may also consume evergreen needles from trees and shrubs.
Foods Wild Rabbits Should Never Eat
Avoid feeding wild rabbits human foods, as many are harmful or unsuitable for their delicate digestive systems. Processed items like bread, crackers, cereals, and sugary snacks lack nutritional value and can cause severe digestive upset. Cooked foods are also detrimental due to their altered composition and added ingredients.
Dairy products are dangerous because rabbits are lactose intolerant and cannot properly digest them. Certain common garden plants and vegetables are also toxic, including avocados, which contain persin, a compound toxic to rabbits. Potatoes, corn, and most fruits should be avoided or given in very small quantities due to their high starch or sugar content, which can disrupt their digestive balance. Iceberg lettuce offers little nutritional value and can cause diarrhea. Numerous wild and garden plants are also toxic to rabbits, such as foxglove, rhubarb leaves, nightshade, lily of the valley, and yew.
The Rabbit’s Unique Digestive System
Wild rabbits possess a specialized digestive system, classifying them as hindgut fermenters, similar to horses. The primary site for the microbial breakdown of fibrous plant material occurs in their large intestine, within their large intestine’s cecum. The cecum houses a diverse population of bacteria and protozoa that ferment indigestible plant fibers, producing essential nutrients like volatile fatty acids, B vitamins, C vitamins, and K vitamins.
Another unique aspect of their digestion is cecotrophy, where rabbits produce and re-ingest soft, nutrient-rich droppings known as cecotropes. These cecotropes contain partially digested material and beneficial microbes, allowing rabbits to absorb nutrients missed during initial digestion. This process highlights their need for a constant supply of high-fiber forage to maintain proper gut motility and overall health.