Rabbits and Hares

66 species

Leporidae is a big family of rabbits and hares that contains over 60 species of extant mammals in all. The common name \"rabbit\" usually applies to all genera in the family except Lepus, while members of Lepus (almost half the species) usually are called hares. Leporids are adapted for rapid movement. They have long hind legs, with four toes on each foot, and shorter fore legs, with five toes each. The soles of their feet are hairy, to improve grip while running, and they have strong claws on all of their toes. Leporids also have elongated and mobile ears, and they have an excellent sense of hearing. Their eyes are large, and their night vision is good. Both rabbits and hares are almost exclusively herbivorous and they are also coprophagous, as they pass food through their digestive systems twice. These animals can be found in deserts, grasslands, tundra, forests, mountains, and even swampland. Rabbits generally dig permanent burrows for shelter, while hares rarely dig shelters of any kind, and their bodies are more suited to fast running than to burrowing. The gestation period in leporids varies from around 28 to 50 days and is generally longer in the hares. This is in part because young hares, or leverets, are born fully developed, with fur and open eyes, while rabbit kits are naked and blind at birth, having the security of the burrow to protect them.
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Leporidae is a big family of rabbits and hares that contains over 60 species of extant mammals in all. The common name \"rabbit\" usually applies to all genera in the family except Lepus, while members of Lepus (almost half the species) usually are called hares. Leporids are adapted for rapid movement. They have long hind legs, with four toes on each foot, and shorter fore legs, with five toes each. The soles of their feet are hairy, to improve grip while running, and they have strong claws on all of their toes. Leporids also have elongated and mobile ears, and they have an excellent sense of hearing. Their eyes are large, and their night vision is good. Both rabbits and hares are almost exclusively herbivorous and they are also coprophagous, as they pass food through their digestive systems twice. These animals can be found in deserts, grasslands, tundra, forests, mountains, and even swampland. Rabbits generally dig permanent burrows for shelter, while hares rarely dig shelters of any kind, and their bodies are more suited to fast running than to burrowing. The gestation period in leporids varies from around 28 to 50 days and is generally longer in the hares. This is in part because young hares, or leverets, are born fully developed, with fur and open eyes, while rabbit kits are naked and blind at birth, having the security of the burrow to protect them.
show less