Today’s newsletter is dedicated to Freya, the pet rabbit of friends of the newsletter, who has been having some health issues lately but is doing better! Colorado has eight species of lagomorph – pikas, rabbits, hares, and jackrabbits. We’ll talk about the first two another time, but today we are going to talk about hares and jackrabbits, who are both members of the genus Lepus, distinct from rabbits by their larger size, larger feet, and longer ears, as well as black markings on their fur. What they have in common with rabbits is their kinetic skulls, which means they have a joint throughout their lives between parts of their skull – all other mammals lose this in childhood. For rabbits and hares, this seems to be an adaptation to the force of striking the ground while hopping. Young hares are called leverets, and hares create flattened nests of grass known as “forms” to raise their young.
141: Hares and Jackrabbits
141: Hares and Jackrabbits
141: Hares and Jackrabbits
Today’s newsletter is dedicated to Freya, the pet rabbit of friends of the newsletter, who has been having some health issues lately but is doing better! Colorado has eight species of lagomorph – pikas, rabbits, hares, and jackrabbits. We’ll talk about the first two another time, but today we are going to talk about hares and jackrabbits, who are both members of the genus Lepus, distinct from rabbits by their larger size, larger feet, and longer ears, as well as black markings on their fur. What they have in common with rabbits is their kinetic skulls, which means they have a joint throughout their lives between parts of their skull – all other mammals lose this in childhood. For rabbits and hares, this seems to be an adaptation to the force of striking the ground while hopping. Young hares are called leverets, and hares create flattened nests of grass known as “forms” to raise their young.