1 00:00:20,400 --> 00:00:23,940 Jane: This is But Why: a Podcast for Curious Kids from Vermont 2 00:00:23,940 --> 00:00:27,585 Public. I'm Jane Lindholm. On this show, we take questions 3 00:00:27,585 --> 00:00:31,065 from curious kids all over the world, and we find answers. 4 00:00:31,665 --> 00:00:35,085 Today, we're going to talk about an animal. I know, I know we 5 00:00:35,085 --> 00:00:38,025 talk about animals a lot, but that's because you send us a lot 6 00:00:38,025 --> 00:00:42,345 of questions about animals. Today's animal focus is of the 7 00:00:42,345 --> 00:00:45,885 small, fluffy kind. Let's see if you can guess what we're going 8 00:00:45,885 --> 00:00:49,830 to talk about. Some of these animals live in our homes as 9 00:00:49,830 --> 00:00:52,890 pets, but you'll also see them out in the wild, even if you 10 00:00:52,890 --> 00:00:55,770 live in a city, these critters are pretty well adapted to 11 00:00:55,770 --> 00:01:00,630 living in city parks or suburbs. These animals are mammals, and 12 00:01:00,630 --> 00:01:03,930 they're often mistaken for rodents, but they're actually a 13 00:01:03,930 --> 00:01:09,030 very specific kind of mammal called a lagomorph. One last 14 00:01:09,075 --> 00:01:13,275 hint, these animals are famous for their long ears and poofy 15 00:01:13,275 --> 00:01:17,295 little white tails. Okay, you've probably guessed it. Now we're 16 00:01:17,295 --> 00:01:21,315 talking about rabbits today, and our guest is someone who not 17 00:01:21,315 --> 00:01:26,295 only studies and loves rabbits, but has also spent a lot of time 18 00:01:26,295 --> 00:01:30,495 living with them in her home. Her name is Margo DeMello. 19 00:01:30,675 --> 00:01:36,240 Margo DeMello: I study human animal interactions, and I have 20 00:01:36,240 --> 00:01:40,860 specialized in rabbits for my whole adult life, and I've 21 00:01:40,860 --> 00:01:45,480 rescued them for forever. But then, in an academic sense, I 22 00:01:45,480 --> 00:01:48,840 study all of the sort of facets of the human animal 23 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:49,620 relationship. 24 00:01:49,980 --> 00:01:53,280 Jane: Professor DeMello teaches at Carroll College in Montana, 25 00:01:53,280 --> 00:01:58,905 and her field is anthrozoology. Anthro means human, and zoology 26 00:01:58,905 --> 00:02:02,925 is the study of animals. So anthrozoology is the study of 27 00:02:02,925 --> 00:02:08,025 how humans and other animals coexist and interact. She also 28 00:02:08,025 --> 00:02:10,785 rescues rabbits and rehabilitates them in her own 29 00:02:10,785 --> 00:02:11,265 home. 30 00:02:11,580 --> 00:02:16,200 Margo DeMello: I have 12 right now, which for me, is a pretty 31 00:02:16,200 --> 00:02:17,040 low number. 32 00:02:17,160 --> 00:02:20,540 Jane: 12 sounds like a pretty high number to me. Professor de 33 00:02:20,540 --> 00:02:23,480 Melo says it can be pretty cool to live with rabbits. 34 00:02:23,540 --> 00:02:26,240 Margo DeMello: I mean, I live in a multi-species household. I 35 00:02:26,240 --> 00:02:30,500 always have. Rabbits are much more recently domesticated and 36 00:02:30,500 --> 00:02:33,740 cats, and certainly the dogs, dogs have been with with us for, 37 00:02:33,740 --> 00:02:37,940 you know, tens of thousands of years, and so they still retain 38 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:42,320 so much of their wildness. And so to have an animal in your 39 00:02:42,320 --> 00:02:47,165 home that has a wild spirit, like, there's something about 40 00:02:47,165 --> 00:02:51,065 that that I don't know. It's, it's, um, there's something 41 00:02:51,065 --> 00:02:51,725 about that. 42 00:02:51,725 --> 00:02:54,725 Jane: But there are also annoying things about living 43 00:02:54,725 --> 00:02:55,865 with lots of rabbits, 44 00:02:55,925 --> 00:02:59,705 Margo DeMello: Um, the gates, the baby gates, the bunny gates, 45 00:02:59,705 --> 00:03:03,725 whatever you want to call them the X pens, because I have, 46 00:03:03,725 --> 00:03:07,805 right now, two groups, and then a single and a single, I'm 47 00:03:07,805 --> 00:03:10,910 trying to integrate to one of my groups. That means I have to 48 00:03:10,910 --> 00:03:15,290 have gates in between them. Rabbits are super territorial, 49 00:03:15,470 --> 00:03:18,830 and so introducing a rabbit to another rabbit is not 50 00:03:18,830 --> 00:03:22,250 necessarily an easy job, and if you just left them to their own 51 00:03:22,250 --> 00:03:26,150 devices, there'd be a lot of fighting. And at my age, 52 00:03:26,150 --> 00:03:29,630 climbing over those gates every day, that's not as fun as it was 53 00:03:29,630 --> 00:03:30,590 maybe when I was younger. 54 00:03:32,390 --> 00:03:34,175 Jane: Do you want to tell us how old you are? Or no? 55 00:03:34,175 --> 00:03:35,255 Margo DeMello: I'm 60. 56 00:03:35,255 --> 00:03:38,075 Jane: So 60 is not as fun climbing over gates. 57 00:03:38,075 --> 00:03:38,675 Margo DeMello: No. 58 00:03:39,380 --> 00:03:42,380 Jane: Margo DeMello has been working as an animal rescuer for 59 00:03:42,380 --> 00:03:45,500 many, many years now. So we want to make sure we're not confusing 60 00:03:45,500 --> 00:03:48,260 you into thinking you should just pluck a wild rabbit from 61 00:03:48,260 --> 00:03:51,020 your local park or field and try to make it live in your house. 62 00:03:51,440 --> 00:03:55,040 And even domesticated rabbits are not always the easiest pets 63 00:03:55,040 --> 00:03:58,580 to have, so you should think very carefully before badgering 64 00:03:58,580 --> 00:04:02,300 your adults into getting you one. But in the meantime, let's 65 00:04:02,345 --> 00:04:06,245 learn more about rabbits and get to your questions. Before we 66 00:04:06,245 --> 00:04:10,145 dive in, do you remember a big vocabulary word I threw out at 67 00:04:10,145 --> 00:04:13,865 the beginning of this episode? I said rabbits are sometimes 68 00:04:13,865 --> 00:04:17,465 confused with rodents. In fact, they used to be classified as 69 00:04:17,465 --> 00:04:20,885 rodents, but now they're known to be in their own category of 70 00:04:20,885 --> 00:04:26,810 animal called a lagomorph, L, A, G, O, M, O, R, P, H. 71 00:04:26,960 --> 00:04:30,560 Margo DeMello: And then within the lagomorph order are rabbits, 72 00:04:30,560 --> 00:04:36,200 hares and pikas. So it's a fairly small order with only 73 00:04:36,200 --> 00:04:38,720 three different types of animals in it. 74 00:04:38,600 --> 00:04:41,180 Jane: Hares look a lot like rabbits, but they have even 75 00:04:41,180 --> 00:04:44,360 longer ears, and they're generally larger and taller than 76 00:04:44,360 --> 00:04:48,620 rabbits. Pikas have sort of a more rounded look, kind of like 77 00:04:48,620 --> 00:04:52,640 groundhogs or prairie dogs with smaller rounded ears, and they 78 00:04:52,640 --> 00:04:54,980 live in cold, usually mountainous regions of North 79 00:04:54,980 --> 00:04:59,660 America and Asia. One thing rabbits, hares and pikas have in 80 00:04:59,660 --> 00:05:03,725 common is that they have two front teeth called incisors that 81 00:05:03,725 --> 00:05:08,225 grow constantly throughout their lives. Lagomorphs also have 82 00:05:08,225 --> 00:05:12,785 something really distinctive, a second set of front incisors 83 00:05:12,785 --> 00:05:16,925 that grow directly behind the first pair. Imagine your two 84 00:05:16,925 --> 00:05:20,285 front teeth, and if, instead of just the two there, you had two 85 00:05:20,285 --> 00:05:24,605 more behind and you had four front teeth instead of two. Want 86 00:05:24,605 --> 00:05:28,670 to know something else that you might find kind of gross about 87 00:05:28,670 --> 00:05:33,350 lagomorphs. They eat their own poop. Lagomorphs actually have 88 00:05:33,410 --> 00:05:37,850 two kinds of poop, and one of the kinds is a little bit softer 89 00:05:37,850 --> 00:05:42,110 and greasier, and it's really high in vitamins. So they eat 90 00:05:42,110 --> 00:05:46,310 it. Maybe the less said about that, the better. So let's get 91 00:05:46,310 --> 00:05:47,270 back on track. 92 00:05:47,450 --> 00:05:49,415 Margo DeMello: And then the rabbit itself. There's not just 93 00:05:49,415 --> 00:05:54,395 one rabbit. There are hundreds of rabbits, so different genera, 94 00:05:54,455 --> 00:06:00,695 that is the plural for genus and different species. So many, many 95 00:06:00,695 --> 00:06:02,555 different rabbits around the world. 96 00:06:02,675 --> 00:06:07,475 Jane: How come some rabbits are wild rabbits and other rabbits 97 00:06:07,535 --> 00:06:08,555 are pets? 98 00:06:08,600 --> 00:06:11,420 Margo DeMello: So there's of all of the hundreds of rabbits that 99 00:06:11,420 --> 00:06:15,080 exist on the planet, a single species has ever been 100 00:06:15,080 --> 00:06:19,640 domesticated, and that is our rabbit. And so the single rabbit 101 00:06:19,640 --> 00:06:24,620 that was domesticated is colloquially known as the 102 00:06:24,620 --> 00:06:29,840 European rabbit. The genus and species is oractolagus 103 00:06:29,840 --> 00:06:33,125 cuniculus, and that is the one that was domesticated. 104 00:06:33,780 --> 00:06:36,480 Jane: So sometimes, when I go to my county fair in the 105 00:06:36,480 --> 00:06:40,020 summertime, there are rabbits there, and there are long haired 106 00:06:40,020 --> 00:06:43,140 rabbits and short haired rabbits and rabbits that are white and 107 00:06:43,140 --> 00:06:45,480 rabbits that are brown and rabbits that are black and 108 00:06:45,480 --> 00:06:50,220 rabbits that have long shaggy ears, those are all one species 109 00:06:50,220 --> 00:06:52,620 of rabbit, even though they look so different. 110 00:06:52,720 --> 00:06:56,140 Margo DeMello: Yes, that is one species of rabbit. Every single 111 00:06:56,140 --> 00:07:00,640 domesticated rabbit on the planet is a European rabbit is 112 00:07:00,820 --> 00:07:05,560 oryctolagus caniculus. And all of those variations, the color, 113 00:07:05,800 --> 00:07:10,960 the hair, length, the ears are only a few 100 years old. 114 00:07:11,320 --> 00:07:14,680 Jane: Wow, that's fascinating. All right, so Penny is seven and 115 00:07:14,680 --> 00:07:15,280 wonders, 116 00:07:15,340 --> 00:07:17,065 Penny: Why are bunnies called bunnies? 117 00:07:18,240 --> 00:07:21,680 Margo DeMello: I see bunny as just a familiar kind of, an 118 00:07:21,680 --> 00:07:26,180 affectionate term. Some people use it to refer to the babies of 119 00:07:26,180 --> 00:07:30,920 rabbits, but technically, that's not correct. They're kits. And 120 00:07:30,920 --> 00:07:35,240 so usually we use bunny because it's this acute kind of, it 121 00:07:35,240 --> 00:07:39,260 sounds softer, I think, in the mouth, to say, than rabbit. And 122 00:07:39,260 --> 00:07:43,180 so you know, when you talk about something that is cute or that 123 00:07:43,180 --> 00:07:46,960 you have some affection towards, Bunny is just sort of a cuter 124 00:07:46,960 --> 00:07:47,620 word. 125 00:07:47,680 --> 00:07:50,560 Jane: So baby bunnies, or baby rabbits, if you're using the 126 00:07:50,560 --> 00:07:55,420 proper name, are called kits, same as Fox babies. A few more 127 00:07:55,420 --> 00:07:59,140 interesting facts about rabbits, they live in burrows, so 128 00:07:59,140 --> 00:08:03,000 underground, and they prefer to live together in groups. 129 00:08:03,060 --> 00:08:06,120 Margo DeMello: They are a social species. They are gregarious. 130 00:08:06,540 --> 00:08:10,020 Most rabbit species are the domesticated rabbities, 131 00:08:10,080 --> 00:08:13,980 absolutely, just like humans, just like most primates, 132 00:08:13,980 --> 00:08:19,440 gregarious, which just means social. So they thrive in social 133 00:08:19,440 --> 00:08:23,720 groups, and that is one of the reasons why, if you're going to 134 00:08:23,720 --> 00:08:27,980 have a pet rabbit, it's nice to have pet rabbits with a 135 00:08:27,980 --> 00:08:28,580 companion. 136 00:08:29,000 --> 00:08:32,360 Jane: I love that vocabulary word that you used, gregarious. 137 00:08:32,600 --> 00:08:35,960 When we think of humans who are gregarious, we think of them as 138 00:08:35,960 --> 00:08:39,920 being very outgoing. They like to talk. They like to be in 139 00:08:39,920 --> 00:08:42,460 social situations. So that's sort of what you mean about 140 00:08:42,460 --> 00:08:44,080 rabbits, too. They like to be together. 141 00:08:44,140 --> 00:08:50,080 Margo DeMello: Yes, yes. They're happier touching someone else. I 142 00:08:50,080 --> 00:08:52,780 get the sense that part of what they're doing is sort of 143 00:08:52,780 --> 00:08:56,980 catching up on their lives together by having this sort of 144 00:08:57,160 --> 00:09:01,560 period where they're just kind of grooming each other's fur and 145 00:09:01,560 --> 00:09:03,120 checking in with each other. 146 00:09:03,720 --> 00:09:08,940 Milo: My name is Milo. I'm three years old, and I want to know 147 00:09:09,120 --> 00:09:10,980 why bunnies have fur? 148 00:09:11,500 --> 00:09:13,660 Margo DeMello: Because they would look terrible naked. 149 00:09:14,020 --> 00:09:18,580 That's the basic. No. Well, all mammals have fur. Mammals, 150 00:09:18,580 --> 00:09:21,460 that's one of the kind of characteristics of a mammal, and 151 00:09:21,460 --> 00:09:25,540 so they wouldn't be mammals if they didn't have fur. Now, 152 00:09:25,540 --> 00:09:29,800 rabbits are born. Here's another vocabulary term for you. Rabbits 153 00:09:29,800 --> 00:09:33,520 are born altricial. And what that means is they are born 154 00:09:33,520 --> 00:09:37,885 without fur, and their eyes are closed. They're essentially very 155 00:09:37,945 --> 00:09:43,045 undeveloped, as opposed to hares, another legomorph, they 156 00:09:43,045 --> 00:09:46,645 are born precocial, and that means they do have their fur, 157 00:09:46,705 --> 00:09:50,065 and their eyes are open and they're kind of ready to go. So 158 00:09:50,065 --> 00:09:53,245 rabbits are more immature when they're born. But to be a 159 00:09:53,245 --> 00:09:57,970 mammal, to get entry into the Mammal class, I think you have 160 00:09:57,970 --> 00:09:58,450 to have fur. 161 00:09:58,450 --> 00:10:02,410 Isha: Hi. My name is Isha. And I'm nine, and I live in Israel. 162 00:10:02,530 --> 00:10:04,630 Why do bunnies have tails? 163 00:10:04,930 --> 00:10:08,230 Adam: My name is Adam and I'm six years old. I live in 164 00:10:08,230 --> 00:10:12,250 Evergreen Colorado. Why do bunnies have puffball tails? 165 00:10:12,300 --> 00:10:15,840 Margo DeMello: So their tails are useful as a form of 166 00:10:15,840 --> 00:10:19,980 communication. Humans show their emotions through their facial 167 00:10:19,980 --> 00:10:23,840 expressions. That's what our facial musculature has sort of 168 00:10:23,840 --> 00:10:28,640 evolved to do, is to communicate our emotional feelings to 169 00:10:28,760 --> 00:10:32,120 outsiders, and that's why we spend so much time looking at 170 00:10:32,120 --> 00:10:37,160 each other's faces. A lot of animals don't have the same 171 00:10:37,220 --> 00:10:42,520 facial muscle structure as humans, and so they don't have 172 00:10:42,520 --> 00:10:45,760 the possibilities of moving their face, but they still need 173 00:10:45,760 --> 00:10:49,840 to communicate to others, and in particular for rabbits, because 174 00:10:49,840 --> 00:10:54,880 rabbits don't use their voices, they really have to use their 175 00:10:54,880 --> 00:10:58,600 bodies. And so you're going to have way more muscles around 176 00:10:58,600 --> 00:11:04,320 things like their ears, their tail, and so the tail, as cute 177 00:11:04,320 --> 00:11:09,060 and small as it is, signals really important stuff to other 178 00:11:09,060 --> 00:11:09,780 rabbits. 179 00:11:09,840 --> 00:11:12,900 Jane: Hang on a sec. Did you catch that rabbits don't usually 180 00:11:12,900 --> 00:11:16,380 use their voices to communicate with each other? Margo DeMello 181 00:11:16,380 --> 00:11:19,860 says they do sometimes make noises if they're really scared 182 00:11:19,860 --> 00:11:24,120 or hurt, and they can also make non verbal sounds by thumping 183 00:11:24,120 --> 00:11:27,480 their feet when they're alarmed or annoyed, or making a sort of 184 00:11:27,480 --> 00:11:29,940 purring sound when they're happy, by clicking their teeth 185 00:11:29,940 --> 00:11:34,785 together really fast, but teeth grinding often suggests they're 186 00:11:34,785 --> 00:11:39,165 in distress. So if you have a rabbit as a pet, it's important 187 00:11:39,165 --> 00:11:41,865 to learn their signals so you know what your rabbit might be 188 00:11:41,865 --> 00:11:46,545 communicating to you. Okay, back to bunnies cute little tails. 189 00:11:46,725 --> 00:11:50,145 How come they're so small if the tail is important for 190 00:11:50,145 --> 00:11:51,165 communication? 191 00:11:51,340 --> 00:11:54,760 Margo DeMello: if we think about animals with longer tails, they 192 00:11:54,760 --> 00:11:59,260 are animals that often use them for balance, rabbits are ground 193 00:11:59,260 --> 00:12:02,280 dwellers, and in fact, they're underground dwellers. When we're 194 00:12:02,280 --> 00:12:05,040 talking about the European rabbit, they live in burrows 195 00:12:05,040 --> 00:12:09,360 underground, and so they don't need any of that. Also prey 196 00:12:09,360 --> 00:12:12,540 animals. Think about other types of prey animals. Think about 197 00:12:12,540 --> 00:12:16,680 deer and those kinds of animals. They have shorter tails, because 198 00:12:16,680 --> 00:12:19,140 if you are being chased by something, the last thing you 199 00:12:19,140 --> 00:12:22,040 want is to have a big tail behind you that somebody can 200 00:12:22,040 --> 00:12:22,700 grab. 201 00:12:22,879 --> 00:12:29,059 Jane: Are you able to look at a rabbit's tail and you can tell 202 00:12:29,059 --> 00:12:32,899 anything about what it's feeling or or its behavior? 203 00:12:33,080 --> 00:12:35,720 Margo DeMello: Um, there's, yeah, there's definitely. It's, 204 00:12:35,720 --> 00:12:38,960 it's, again, it's subtle. If you live with a rabbit, you have to 205 00:12:38,960 --> 00:12:43,720 learn subtle, more subtle kind of cues in their body. But one 206 00:12:43,720 --> 00:12:46,840 of the things that people who live with rabbits always note, 207 00:12:47,080 --> 00:12:49,840 and especially if they have a rabbit who's got a particularly 208 00:12:49,840 --> 00:12:53,620 sassy personality, that when they're doing something naughty, 209 00:12:53,800 --> 00:12:57,340 or you scold them because you don't want them chewing on their 210 00:12:57,340 --> 00:13:00,900 wall or whatever it is that they're doing, they will flick 211 00:13:00,900 --> 00:13:05,160 their tail at you. And again, it's very quick, and it's kind 212 00:13:05,160 --> 00:13:10,680 of subtle, but it's pretty easy to, once you have that 213 00:13:10,680 --> 00:13:13,260 relationship with that rabbit, to understand that they're 214 00:13:13,260 --> 00:13:17,580 basically saying, Well, I'm going to do what you're asking. 215 00:13:17,700 --> 00:13:20,360 I'm not going to like it, and the second you turn around, I'm 216 00:13:20,360 --> 00:13:21,140 gonna do it again. 217 00:13:21,300 --> 00:13:24,840 Jane: Sassy bunnies. After the break, more questions about 218 00:13:24,840 --> 00:13:28,440 rabbits with anthrozoologist Margo DeMello, like, why do 219 00:13:28,440 --> 00:13:32,160 bunnies hop? And can bunnies see behind themselves without 220 00:13:32,160 --> 00:13:33,120 turning their heads? 221 00:13:33,120 --> 00:13:39,120 This is But Why. I'm Jane Lindholm, and today we're 222 00:13:39,120 --> 00:13:42,240 learning about rabbits with Margo DeMello, a friend of 223 00:13:42,240 --> 00:13:45,780 rabbits and a scholar of human animal interactions. 224 00:13:46,140 --> 00:13:51,060 Maria: Hi, my name is Maria, and at four years I live in Toronto, 225 00:13:51,060 --> 00:13:53,640 Canada. Why do bunnies hop? 226 00:13:53,640 --> 00:13:57,960 Evie: I live in McDonough, Georgia. Why do bunnies hop? 227 00:13:57,960 --> 00:14:03,240 Ailish: My name is Ailish, and I am six years old. I live in 228 00:14:03,240 --> 00:14:07,200 Dublin, Scotland, and my question is, why do bunnies hop? 229 00:14:07,120 --> 00:14:10,900 Nikolina: Hi, my name is Nikolina, and I'm seven years 230 00:14:10,900 --> 00:14:18,520 old. I live in Philadelphia, and I want to know why bunnies hop 231 00:14:18,520 --> 00:14:22,240 instead of walk like a regular animal,? 232 00:14:22,540 --> 00:14:25,540 Margo DeMello: Right? Rabbits actually can walk. A lot of 233 00:14:25,540 --> 00:14:28,660 people don't realize that they can walk. When a rabbit is in a 234 00:14:28,660 --> 00:14:32,320 new environment and are very kind of curious or nervous, they 235 00:14:32,320 --> 00:14:35,620 will walk. The difference between walking and hopping is 236 00:14:35,620 --> 00:14:39,940 pretty subtle. Walking involves four different legs moving in 237 00:14:39,940 --> 00:14:44,980 four different sort of times. When you hop, what happens is 238 00:14:45,505 --> 00:14:49,345 your two front legs move independently, but the back move 239 00:14:49,345 --> 00:14:54,145 is a group. And for this particular type of prey animal, 240 00:14:54,325 --> 00:14:58,705 they need to have speed, and so they've got fairly, you know, 241 00:14:59,065 --> 00:15:03,805 muscular back legs. Those back legs are also really useful for 242 00:15:03,805 --> 00:15:07,525 digging. The front legs do a lot of the work of the digging, but 243 00:15:07,525 --> 00:15:11,650 the back legs also do it. They push the dirt behind them, and 244 00:15:11,650 --> 00:15:17,590 given that they are diggers, it serves them in those ways. It 245 00:15:17,590 --> 00:15:23,290 also makes their running away a little bit more erratic. For a 246 00:15:23,290 --> 00:15:27,310 predator, they do this thing that we call binking in the 247 00:15:27,310 --> 00:15:30,790 rabbit world. That is not a scientific term, but we all use 248 00:15:30,790 --> 00:15:34,495 it. And what that means is, in other animals do this as well 249 00:15:34,495 --> 00:15:41,035 other prey animals, it is a form of play where they hop and and 250 00:15:41,095 --> 00:15:47,095 twist and sort of dance. And you see that with the young, young 251 00:15:47,095 --> 00:15:51,955 deer lambs. You know, those kinds of animals will do that as 252 00:15:51,955 --> 00:15:55,300 babies, and they typically don't tend to do it as adults anymore. 253 00:15:55,600 --> 00:15:59,680 And for rabbit, it's super critical, because if you're 254 00:15:59,680 --> 00:16:03,220 being chased by a coyote or a fox or something, and you don't 255 00:16:03,220 --> 00:16:07,420 run in just a straight line, but you twist and you turn. It's a 256 00:16:07,420 --> 00:16:11,560 good way to evade those predators. So I don't think I'm 257 00:16:11,620 --> 00:16:16,900 directly answering why they hop, but their hopping is beneficial 258 00:16:16,900 --> 00:16:23,005 to them, and it is in part, a result of their back legs and 259 00:16:23,005 --> 00:16:26,725 the need to have these back legs the way that they are. 260 00:16:26,900 --> 00:16:31,220 Jane: Do hares and rabbits have different legs and different 261 00:16:31,340 --> 00:16:32,420 ways of moving? 262 00:16:32,600 --> 00:16:35,720 Margo DeMello: Yes. So when you look at a jackrabbit, which is 263 00:16:35,720 --> 00:16:39,260 another confusing term, because jack rabbits are hares, not 264 00:16:39,260 --> 00:16:44,000 rabbits, so they're again, they're born precocial, so 265 00:16:44,000 --> 00:16:46,820 they're already kind of getting started as soon as they come 266 00:16:46,820 --> 00:16:52,040 out. And they are much faster and much stronger than a rabbit, 267 00:16:52,040 --> 00:16:55,640 for sure. And one of the reasons for that is, if we think about 268 00:16:55,640 --> 00:17:01,145 where a lot of hares live, we're talking open spaces. We're 269 00:17:01,145 --> 00:17:04,505 talking about not a lot of cover. We're also talking about 270 00:17:04,505 --> 00:17:09,125 animals that do not burrow and so for evasive tactics, for 271 00:17:09,125 --> 00:17:14,525 predators, those legs are critical. So yeah, they're fast, 272 00:17:14,525 --> 00:17:19,490 they're strong. To be kicked by a jackrabbit is not a, as far as 273 00:17:19,490 --> 00:17:22,490 I understand, I've never been kicked by a jack rabbit, but 274 00:17:22,490 --> 00:17:26,630 I've seen it, and it's pretty significant. Those legs, they 275 00:17:26,630 --> 00:17:29,810 also their ears, which are another important defense 276 00:17:29,810 --> 00:17:34,430 mechanism for both rabbits and hares. And they can control 277 00:17:34,430 --> 00:17:37,550 their ears. They can move independently of each other. 278 00:17:38,270 --> 00:17:42,755 That's another super good way of deterring while detecting 279 00:17:43,355 --> 00:17:46,835 predators, so that you can then take some evasive action. 280 00:17:47,375 --> 00:17:48,875 Jane: What do rabbits eat? 281 00:17:49,140 --> 00:17:54,300 Margo DeMello: They can eat a lot of things. Their bodies are 282 00:17:54,360 --> 00:17:59,100 evolved for them to eat a very high fiber diet, and so that 283 00:17:59,100 --> 00:18:02,940 means typically consistent with kind of low nutrient, low 284 00:18:02,940 --> 00:18:07,980 calorie diet, so they have to eat all day. They pretty much 285 00:18:08,040 --> 00:18:11,445 are kind of foraging and munching all day long, because 286 00:18:11,445 --> 00:18:15,945 they need to get, if they're in the wild, a variety of food from 287 00:18:15,945 --> 00:18:19,905 all kinds of places to bring in a mix of the right nutrients 288 00:18:19,905 --> 00:18:23,565 that they need within our homes. Of course, you can just buy 289 00:18:23,565 --> 00:18:26,685 commercial pellets, which is what most people do. But even 290 00:18:26,685 --> 00:18:29,325 with the commercial pellets, which have all the nutrients, 291 00:18:29,565 --> 00:18:33,345 they still need the fiber from the hay, and they still need the 292 00:18:33,345 --> 00:18:37,650 variety, because they're an animal that is primed to be 293 00:18:37,650 --> 00:18:41,190 eating all the time, if you only fed them, let's say, two times a 294 00:18:41,190 --> 00:18:45,930 day. Their guts can't handle that. Their digestive systems 295 00:18:45,930 --> 00:18:51,210 need to be moving all of the time, and so that's why they 296 00:18:51,210 --> 00:18:54,990 need to have other kinds of food that they can get access to all 297 00:18:54,990 --> 00:18:58,455 day long. And it's also just part of what they do. They're 298 00:18:58,455 --> 00:19:01,695 like, I need to have I need to have a bite to eat right now. I 299 00:19:01,695 --> 00:19:05,055 just need to have a little bit of munchie, bit of munchie right 300 00:19:05,055 --> 00:19:08,415 now. So they eat high fiber foods. They are vegetarians. 301 00:19:08,415 --> 00:19:12,135 They do not eat any animal products. But they're also like 302 00:19:12,135 --> 00:19:15,255 us, in that they have a sweet tooth, and so that means that 303 00:19:15,255 --> 00:19:20,475 fruit, they adore candy, and which is as good for them as it 304 00:19:20,475 --> 00:19:24,180 is for us, probably worse, but they will steal. They'll steal 305 00:19:24,180 --> 00:19:26,760 chocolate. They'll steal anything that looks like it 306 00:19:26,760 --> 00:19:30,420 could be good. And they can really, really develop a 307 00:19:30,420 --> 00:19:33,600 problematic sweet tooth if you help, if you indulge that. 308 00:19:33,780 --> 00:19:39,480 Jane: We have several questions from kids who have heard stories 309 00:19:39,480 --> 00:19:45,885 that have rabbits eating carrots or lettuce and strawberries or 310 00:19:45,885 --> 00:19:49,665 carrots and radishes. And Karen, who wrote to us, says: 311 00:19:49,720 --> 00:19:55,180 Karen: Why does most stories have rabbits eating carrots if 312 00:19:55,180 --> 00:19:57,940 that's not good for rabbits in real life? 313 00:19:58,120 --> 00:20:00,400 Margo DeMello: In small quantities, they're absolutely 314 00:20:00,400 --> 00:20:05,080 fine of vegetables, they are a fairly high sugar vegetable, and 315 00:20:05,080 --> 00:20:07,120 that is another reason why they're going to like them. 316 00:20:07,180 --> 00:20:11,260 Jane: So for domesticated rabbits, in small doses, those 317 00:20:11,260 --> 00:20:14,905 kinds of foods are not bad, but normally rabbits need to eat a 318 00:20:14,905 --> 00:20:18,685 lot of grasses, a lot of things that are just not as full of 319 00:20:18,685 --> 00:20:22,645 that sugar as some of those vegetables and fruits might be. 320 00:20:23,125 --> 00:20:29,425 Pippa: My name's Pippa. I am six years old. I live in Burlington, 321 00:20:29,485 --> 00:20:33,745 Vermont, why do bunnies have long ears? 322 00:20:33,960 --> 00:20:37,860 Elle: My name is Elle. I am five years old. I live in California, 323 00:20:37,860 --> 00:20:40,200 Campbell. Why do bunnies have long ears? 324 00:20:40,300 --> 00:20:43,900 Margo DeMello: So the ears do a few things I mentioned before 325 00:20:43,900 --> 00:20:47,620 that they're incredible for detecting predators, because 326 00:20:47,620 --> 00:20:53,680 they, so the longer that the ear is, the the longer that canal 327 00:20:53,680 --> 00:20:59,620 is, and it could funnel down sounds that other ears, like 328 00:20:59,620 --> 00:21:02,980 ours would never be able to detect. They pull them down in 329 00:21:03,505 --> 00:21:07,945 the other is temperature regulation. Rabbits don't sweat, 330 00:21:08,005 --> 00:21:13,225 they don't pant. And every mammal has to have some sort of 331 00:21:13,225 --> 00:21:15,805 a way to regulate their temperature. And that's what 332 00:21:15,805 --> 00:21:21,205 those ears do. In particular, they they will help in hot 333 00:21:21,205 --> 00:21:24,865 weather to kind of keep that animal a little bit cooler. 334 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:29,520 Bella: Hi, my name is Bella. I'm from Erie, Pennsylvania. I'm 335 00:21:29,520 --> 00:21:34,260 five years old. And why do rabbits have eyeballs at the 336 00:21:34,260 --> 00:21:35,580 side of their heads? 337 00:21:36,060 --> 00:21:40,680 Hannah: My name is Hannah. I'm five years old. I live in 338 00:21:40,680 --> 00:21:46,140 Roswell, Georgia. How can bunnies see behind themselves 339 00:21:46,440 --> 00:21:48,465 without moving their head? 340 00:21:48,705 --> 00:21:53,385 Nikhil: My name is Nikhil. I am six years old. I live in 341 00:21:53,385 --> 00:21:57,945 Norwood, Massachusetts. How can rabbits look behind themselves 342 00:21:58,065 --> 00:22:00,585 without even turning their heads? 343 00:22:00,585 --> 00:22:03,885 Margo DeMello: Sure. What they need, again, as prey animals, is 344 00:22:03,885 --> 00:22:07,125 to be able to see around them. And so when those eyes are on 345 00:22:07,125 --> 00:22:10,650 the side of your head instead of the front, you don't have depth 346 00:22:10,650 --> 00:22:17,130 perception, but what you gain is almost 360 degree peripheral 347 00:22:17,190 --> 00:22:21,210 vision. So yeah, they can see on the sides. They can see, not 348 00:22:21,210 --> 00:22:25,890 fully, fully, there's going to be two blind spots in a rabbit's 349 00:22:25,890 --> 00:22:30,930 vision. One is directly in front of their nose, which is one 350 00:22:30,930 --> 00:22:34,215 reason why, when you meet a new rabbit, you don't put your hand 351 00:22:34,215 --> 00:22:37,275 out the way that you might for a dog, because they basically 352 00:22:37,275 --> 00:22:40,755 can't see it, and then it's going to be a threat to them, so 353 00:22:40,755 --> 00:22:44,595 right in front of their nose and immediately in the back of their 354 00:22:44,595 --> 00:22:47,955 head, right in the back everything else they can see. 355 00:22:47,000 --> 00:22:51,680 Jane: A lot of prey animals have eyes that are spaced out toward 356 00:22:51,680 --> 00:22:54,560 the sides of their heads, because they want to be able to 357 00:22:54,560 --> 00:22:56,240 see if something is coming. 358 00:22:56,240 --> 00:22:56,900 Margo DeMello: Right. 359 00:22:57,220 --> 00:23:06,780 Gwen: My name is Gwen. I am six years old. I live in Cambridge, 360 00:23:06,780 --> 00:23:11,640 Massachusetts. Why do bunnies come out at night? 361 00:23:11,940 --> 00:23:15,060 Margo DeMello: So technically, they're not nocturnal. They're 362 00:23:15,060 --> 00:23:16,080 crepuscular. 363 00:23:16,000 --> 00:23:20,200 Jane: Crepuscular is one of my favorite words. It refers to 364 00:23:20,200 --> 00:23:24,100 twilight, that time right around dawn or dusk when the light is 365 00:23:24,100 --> 00:23:29,140 low. So crepuscular animals are most active in the hours around 366 00:23:29,140 --> 00:23:30,580 sunrise and sunset. 367 00:23:30,859 --> 00:23:34,819 Margo DeMello: And I am assuming that evolutionarily, that has to 368 00:23:34,819 --> 00:23:37,339 do with, again, predators. There's going to be predators at 369 00:23:37,339 --> 00:23:41,979 any any time, but depending on the environment in which you 370 00:23:43,059 --> 00:23:46,239 kind of emerged. And for our domestic rabbits, that would be 371 00:23:46,479 --> 00:23:50,199 the Iberian Peninsula. So in other words, Spain and Portugal, 372 00:23:50,199 --> 00:23:54,999 you know, millions of years ago, whatever predators were in that 373 00:23:54,999 --> 00:23:58,239 environment at that time is how those rabbits would have 374 00:23:58,239 --> 00:24:02,219 developed that type of a system of being most active, morning 375 00:24:02,219 --> 00:24:04,799 and night, and then remember, they have those burrows that 376 00:24:04,799 --> 00:24:06,179 then they could retreat to. 377 00:24:06,300 --> 00:24:08,460 Jane: So if you want to look for rabbits in your neck of the 378 00:24:08,460 --> 00:24:11,940 woods, try going for a walk or sitting quietly at the edge of a 379 00:24:11,940 --> 00:24:15,600 hedge or field early in the morning or right around sunset. 380 00:24:16,860 --> 00:24:19,860 Okay, let's leave it there. Thanks to Margo DeMello for 381 00:24:19,860 --> 00:24:23,280 sharing her knowledge and love of rabbits with us. She's an 382 00:24:23,280 --> 00:24:26,820 assistant professor of anthrozoology at Carroll College 383 00:24:26,820 --> 00:24:31,125 in Montana. As always, if you have a question about anything, 384 00:24:31,305 --> 00:24:35,205 have an adult record you asking it on a smartphone using an app 385 00:24:35,205 --> 00:24:38,625 like voice memos, and then have your adult email the file to 386 00:24:39,285 --> 00:24:44,145 questions@butwhykids.org. But Why is produced by Sarah Baik, 387 00:24:44,205 --> 00:24:47,565 Melody Bodette, and me, Jane Lindholm at Vermont Public and 388 00:24:47,565 --> 00:24:51,885 distributed by PRX. Our video producer is Joey Palumbo, and 389 00:24:51,885 --> 00:24:55,290 our theme music is by Luke Reynolds. 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