Factoids
Rabbits are burrowing animals living in tunnels excavated in hedge banks, under thickets of hawthorn and bramble and in similar locations. They mainly emerge from their burrows at night to feed on plants.
Each rabbit eats about 500g (1 lb) of green matter each day, so large colonies have a marked effect on vegetation near their warrens.
They mature and start to breed within a year, which is why populations increase so rapidly. This high reproductive potential may be checked to a small degree by predators, such as foxes and weasels, and more recently by buzzards, which seem to prefer rabbits to anything else.
Future prospects, without another outbreak of *myxomatosis , will see very little preventing rabbits continuing to build up their number to plague levels.
Above or Underground?: All rabbits live underground in burrows or warrens, unlike hares which live in simple nests above ground.
The only place a rabbit sweats is through the pads on its feet.
Zigzag Pattern: Rabbits run in a zigzag pattern when being chased, making it difficult for the predator to follow its scent.
Under the *1954 Pest Act every land-owner is responsible for controlling wild rabbits on his/her land.
Faeces as Food: Rabbits produce cecal pellets, sometimes called "night faeces," and re-ingest them to absorb the full nutritional content of their food.
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Description
Brown fur mixed with black hair; buff between shoulders, around eyes and under limbs; long, black-tipped ears; white hair underneath tail.
- Name: European Rabbit
- Latin Name: Oryctolagus cuniculus
- Family: Leporidae (Hares and Rabbits)
- Range: Europe and throughout world
- Habitat: Woodland, Grassland, Scrubby areas
- Diet: Grass, herbs, twigs, and bark
- Head and Body Length: (35 to 45 cm)
- Tail Length: 2 to 3 inches (4 to 7 cm)
- Weight: 3 to 5 pounds (1 to 2 kg)
- Conservation Status: Common