By Beth Potier, Media Relations

John Litvaitis, professor of wildlife ecology at UNH; Paul Karczmarczyk, northeast regional biologist, Ruffed Grouse Society; Lee Perry, executive director, New Hampshire Fish & Game; and Congressman Jeb Bradley pose near the sign marking the beginning of a project aimed creating new habitats for New England cottontails.

Congressman Jeb Bradley took a walk in UNH’s West Foss Farm woods Monday to mark the ground-breaking of a new project aimed at enhancing habitat for the New England cottontail, which is a candidate for listing under the Endangered Species Act.

The project, which will create several acres of cottontail-friendly thicket in an area of Foss Farm where the elusive cottontail is known to reside, is a collaborative effort of UNH and the UNH Cooperative Extension, the New Hampshire Wildlife Federation, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Ruffed Grouse Society, the New Hampshire Fish & Game Department, and Stonyfield Farm.

“All of you being able to work together to provide species habitat for the cottontail is very laudable,” Bradley said at the event, adding that efforts such as this one have revitalized several species in New Hampshire.

Professor of wildlife ecology John Litvaitis explained that the New England cottontail and other species, including the American woodcock and blue-winged warblers, thrive in early successional sites – the thick tangles of shrubs and vines that emerge after a forest habitat is disturbed. “The cottontails’ fate is pretty much tied into these sites and how we maintain these sites,” he said.

Historically, natural forces such as fire, flooding or windthrow disturbed forests to create ideal habitat, but “we’ve taken away most of the forces that provide this habitat,” Litvaitis said.

Following remarks, the Congressman was willingly upstaged by the Brontosaurus, an excavator with a chopping tool that clears land by shredding small trees and brush from the top down. The Brontosaurus leaves a tangle of branches and woodchips behind, creating what Litvaitis and others hope will become optimal habitat for the New England cottontail.