The coastal tapeti (Sylvilagus tapetillus), also known as the Rio de Janeiro dwarf cottontail or dwarf tapeti, is a species of cottontail rabbit native to Brazil. Known from only three specimens, captured in the late nineteenth century in the Paraíba Valley, it was for a long time considered to be a subspecies of the common tapeti (Sylvilagus brasiliensis). Slightly smaller than its close relative, analysis in 2017 confirmed that it is sufficiently distinct in both appearance and genetics to be considered a species in its own right.[2] Due to destruction of its putative habitat in the densely populated Paraíba Valley, it is unclear whether or not the species still survives in the present day.[1]
^Ruedas; French; Silva; Platt II; Salazar-Bravo; Mora; Thompson (2017). "A prolegomenon to the systematics of South American cottontail rabbits (Mammalia, Lagomorpha, Leporidae: Sylvilagus): designation of a neotype for S. brasiliensis (Linnaeus, 1758), and restoration of S. andinus (Thomas, 1897) and S. tapetillus Thomas, 1913". University of Michigan. 205. ISSN0076-8405.
