International Rabbit Day β’ September 26
Rabbit ancestors go back millions of years, with early lagomorphs appearing in Asia. The European rabbit, the species from which domestic rabbits came, originated in southwestern Europe and northwestern Africa. People later introduced it to many other parts of the world.
Some odd facts:
π Rabbits can see almost all around them.
Their eyes sit high on the sides of their heads, helping them watch for danger from almost every direction. But they have a small blind spot right in front of their face.
π They have a third eyelid.
Called the nictitating membrane, it helps protect and moisten the eye.
π They can sleep with their eyes open.
This can make it difficult to tell whether a rabbit is awake or napping. When it feels safe, it may close its eyes.
π They have 28 teeth.
Their teeth continue growing throughout their lives. Hay and other fibrous food help wear them down.
π They eat some of their own droppings.
These special soft droppings are called cecotropes. Rabbits eat them to absorb nutrients they did not get the first time. Nutritional encore. π©
π They cannot vomit.
Their anatomy makes vomiting extremely difficult, and rabbits are generally considered unable to vomit.
π Their ears help cool them down.
Blood vessels in those long ears help release body heat.
π They can move their ears independently.
This helps them pick up sounds coming from different directions.
π Rabbits can βpurrβ with their teeth.
A relaxed rabbit may gently grind its teeth, creating a soft vibration. Hard or loud grinding, however, can be a sign of pain.
π Their feet can work as an alarm.
When rabbits sense danger, they may thump the ground with a hind foot to warn others nearby.
π A happy rabbit may suddenly go airborne.
The jump-and-twist move is called a binky. It can look like the rabbit briefly forgot how gravity works.
π Baby rabbits are called kits or kittens.
A male is a buck, a female is a doe, and giving birth is called kindling. Rabbits apparently have their own vocabulary department.
π Rabbits are not rodents.
They are lagomorphs. One clue is behind their famous front teeth: rabbits have a second pair of tiny upper incisors.
π Rabbits and hares are not the same.
Rabbit babies are generally born hairless and with closed eyes. Hare babies are born furry, with open eyes, and are much more developed at birth.
π Wild European rabbits are underground builders.
They can live in networks of connected burrows called warrens, which may house several rabbits.
π And yes, rabbits really can multiply fast.
Pregnancy lasts around a month, and females can become pregnant again soon after giving birth. So the expression βbreeding like rabbitsβ did not come out of nowhere. π
What’s odd, doc? π°
β¨ α΄ΚΈα΅β±βΏα΅ α΄α΅α΅ α΅αΆ α΅Κ°α΅ ΚΛ‘α΅α΅ α΅α΅Κ³α΅α΅ α΅α΅Λ’β±αΆ α΅Λ‘α΅α΅