PIX11 NewsQUEENS, N.Y. (PIX11) -- A rare rabbit called the New England cottontail is losing its home because forests are getting smaller and another kind of rabbit is taking over.
The Queens Zoo is working hard to help bring this unique native rabbit back from the edge of disappearing.
Donna Mae Butcher, Assistant Animal Curator at Queens Zoo, explains that the New England cottontail is having a tough time because it loses its forest homes when trees are cut down for new buildings and roads. On top of that, it faces competition from the eastern cottontail rabbit, which is not native and is spreading fast, and it has many predators like foxes and owls.
This summer, Queens Zoo raised 15 baby rabbits called kits. Before being released back into the wild—six in Fort Foster Park, four in Rachel Carson