Until 2009, I had lived in Arlington for more than 20 years and never seen a rabbit. Then two appeared in the forsythia thicket outside my living room window during the spring. Friends who lived in other parts of the county also started seeing rabbits. It was magical. The eastern cottontail is cute, even up close, with its broad, almost translucent ears. But now there are so many, they’re turning into road kill. I’m wondering if our resident red-tailed hawk, which has done a nice job controlling the squirrel and pigeon populations will develop a taste for rabbit. My neighbors have not seen our fox for a while, but one says he saw a coyote with a rabbit not long ago. So perhaps nature is in the process of rebalancing.
Alert for Mr. MacGregor
