RABBIT:(Cottontails) There are two species of Cottontails in the United States, all with similar characteristics. Cottontail Rabbits are quite timid, never venturing to farr from the saftey of their warrens. They will dart down their holes at the slightest disturbance. Rabbits eat mostly inner bark of saplings and shrubs, as well as their leaves and fruit . They are also very fond of clover. In the summer, a pair may produce up to 3 litters with 3 to 7 young each. Rabbits provide a perfect illustration of Natures' balance. Their rapid rate of reproduction is countered by the fact that almost every predator animal eats them.
Rabbit is afraid of almost everything and so its gift is to teach us about fear.
If Rabbit has come to you, it is time to examine those deep reflexive fears that hold you back from growing. Do you keep dashing for the safety of your old patterns every time something new or challenging presents itself?
Face your fears and overcome them to promote your spiritual growth.
Rabbits also teaches us, through its timidity , to be gentle with ourselves. People tend to dislike the fearful parts of themselves and other people, but virtually everyone likes Rabbit. Accept that it is part of human nature to feel fear at times, but also believe that our fears need not paralyze our growth and movement.
RACCOON: There are six species of Raccoon in North America, but no related species are found in Europe. Raccoons are primarily nocturnal. On summer days, they can sometimes be seen resting high in a tree, occasionally appropriating the nest of a hawk or crow. Usually, though, they spend their days sleeping in the hollows of trees. Raccoons often travel in small groups of one or two families. They forge for fruits, vegetables, small animals, and birds. They will raid a farm or a house if wild food is scarce. They are excellent swimmers and can catch fish. Since they take to the trees for safety, they never venture too far from that source of security.
An adult male can weigh easily up to 50 pounds or better, and although are slow runners, they can be tough fighters holding their own against other animals including humans. They are very clean animals and will wash meat and other foods in water before consuming it.
Raccoons share their gift of curiosity with us. They will explore and examine a myriad of places and situations for potential food and fun, but mostly food. They will leave no stone literately, in the search for an easy meal.
If Raccoon comes to you in vision or dreaming, you are being asked to examine your surroundings more carefully and with an inquisitive mind. Perhaps you have overlooked something that could be of benefit to you.
The negative side of curiosity is that it can get you into trouble if you are prying into the wrong place for the wrong reason. Are you sticking your nose in somewhere that it might not belong? Are you looking for an easy way out when it might not be the best thing? If Raccoon comes to your window of your life, only you can determine from your life's circumstances if it advising you to be more, or less curious.
RAT: Rats would not be so successful if it were not for humans. Our living habits have provided them with homes and food, and we have eliminated many of their predators. They are ravenous creatures which eat a quarter to a third of their body weight a day. They gnaw on things to keep their teeth, which is always growing, short and very sharp. Pack Rats are famous for collecting things. They have been known to strip a sealed cabin in the wood of everything they could carry. One species is called the Trade Rat because it leaves a stone in the place of what it takes. Black Rats carried the fleas that led to the Black Plague. In Norway some years ago, hungry rats infested a bird sanctuary and ate, among other things, all the birds. They even managed to grab seagulls and hold them down while killing them.
Rats reflects back to us our own human capacity for greed, taking so much that others' needs are denied. They will sometimes overeat and throw up rather than let food be shared. They will dispossess other small animals of their homes if they can, wanting no competition for food. They truly personify humankind's imperialistic drives, which are making life on the planet more and more tenuous.
If Rat has come to you, look at the ways you may be participating in wasteful consumption.
RAVEN: Raven is clearly related to crow but is a lot larger and prefers to live in the forest and on cliff faces. They measure 25 inches, tail to beak, which makes them the largest songbird in North America. They once inhabited all sections of the Northern Hemisphere, but due to the persecution, there were longer found. They prey on rabbits and rodents, though their favorite food is carrion. They store no food, but in winters, they do very well on ded animals. Raven is clearly one of the most intelligent birds. They are especially clever mimics and can learn some human words easily.
Raven brings the gift of mystery. All of Creation is truly a great mystery (hence this term is as one way of referring to the Creator).
They have an intimate association with the mystery of death. Because Ravens would feed on corpses of the dead hanging on the gallows, early European settlers hated and feared this bird and considered it a bad omen. The Raven being black in color, associated it automatically with night, the dark, and the fears that reside there.
Giving it a bad name and a bad rap no matter what.
There are many stories in Native cultures about the mystery and magic of this elusive black bird. Medicine people know the special gift given to Raven as a transporter of the souls between the two worlds of Spirit and Life.
They are highly respected in many Nations and tribes.
The Ravens' piercing sounds that can and does alter consciousness, and have been known to exercise this power, emitting a large variety of bone chilling sounds at times.
Ravens are associated with psychic abilities, and their feathers are sometimes used in clairvoyance.
Special Note: Out of 98% of birds that have been found dead by humans and such, there are two birds in the world you will rarely ever find the carcasses...Raven and Crow.
If Raven has flown into your life, you can be sure something unusual will be happing, from the Great Mystery out of the Void. While you cannot fully prepare for the mysterious, it is good to meet Raven not with fear, but rather appreciation for the lessons one can learn.
RED-TAILED HAWK: They are a very common Hawk in the U.S. They live in a wide variety of environments from Alaska to Panama. They are a very quick, skillful flyers and can be often be seen riding air thermals over fields looking for prey. They prefer, though, to hunt from a perch in a tree, because they are able to take off and accelerate rapidly to strike. Red Hawks eat rabbits, rodents, snakes, frogs, fish, lizards and even other birds when they can catch them. They seem especially fond of rattlesnakes meat and will even risk the snake's deadly venom to get their treat.
A mated pair of Hawk will occupy the same nest year after year unless the nest is gone or usurped by another formidable bird. They are considered by many to be the complement of the Great Horned Owl. as they share the same ranges and have been know to share the same nests, alternating by using them at different times of the year.
The Hopi call them Red Eagle and give them almost as much significance as true Eagles.
Red Hawks are fiery and explosive, like the Sun. They bring these qualities to the people.
If Red Hawk comes to you, it is saying you need to embrace the power of fire and come alive with energy and passion for life. If you are clearly aware of what you were thinking or doing when Red Hawk showed itself to you, look to that as a place to ignite your fire in life.
For a long time, Red-Tailed Hawk was shot because of an erroneous belief that they ate poultry.
Is something in your life that you are possessive about, are you trying to keep at the expense of another?
Possessiveness is stifling, to yourself and to the person or thing that you are focusing on, and is potentially damaging to others.
Again if Red Hawk appears to you, a possible message is not to squelch the fire by claiming undue ownership.
