The twenty-third of September is International Rabbit Day! Rabbits
are known for their wiggly nose, large eyes, powerful hind legs that enable
them to hop, and for their long ears (though, Hares
ears are twice the length of their heads, making them notably longer than a
rabbit’s ears). Being prey animals, these features help to aid rabbits in
avoiding predators. Their large ears allow them to hear predators before they
get too close, and their large eyes allow them to see almost a full 360
degrees, enabling them to spot predators easily. In order to escape predators,
rabbits will run away in a zigzag motion and will thump the ground with their
powerful hind legs to warn others of approaching danger. Rabbits also have long,
constantly growing and self-sharpening incisors, similar to those of wombats
and vicuñas. These incisors are called “gliriform”,
and were actually named after rodents and rabbits, which are placed in the
grand order “Glires”.There are eight different genera in the rabbit
classification, which includes the European rabbit (Oryctolagus) and cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus). Rabbits
belong to the Leporidae family, which
includes Hares. Both belong to the order Lagomorpha,
which extends to include pikas.
Wild rabbits live in meadows, forests, grasslands, deserts, and wetlands. They
usually burrow and live underground in warrens, with the exception of
cottontail rabbits, which nest above ground. Rabbits are most active at dawn,
dusk, and throughout the night. Rabbits are herbivores, and usually graze on
grass or weeds. In order to digest their food, which is high in cellulose and
difficult to process, rabbits use a form of hindgut fermentation, in which they
actually eat their own feces. By re-ingesting this, rabbits can digest their
food and process the necessary nutrients.Image: rabbit-373691 by SimonaR. CC0 Creative
Commons via Pixabay.
Rabbit Day!! Who knew?