Every pet and farmed rabbit belongs to one species, the European rabbit. In the wild it lives in groups in underground burrow networks called warrens.
Quick answers
What is it?Mammal
Carnivore?No, herbivore
Dangerous?No
Domesticated?Yes
Domesticated from the European rabbit, a wild species native only to Spain, Portugal and south-west France.
Awake when?Day & night
Hibernates?No
Kept as a pet?Commonly
Do people eat it?Yes
At a glance
Found inWorldwide
HabitatGrassland, Scrub, Farmland
ColoursBrown, White, Grey, Black
SizeSmall
Length38–50 cm (wild)
Weight1.5–2.5 kg (wild; pet breeds vary)
Legs4
Covered inFur
Lives ingroups
Lives for8–12 years
Can swim
In the wild
- Where it lives
- Native to the Iberian Peninsula and south-west France; introduced across Europe, Australia, New Zealand, the Americas and elsewhere.
- What it eats
- Grasses and leafy plants.
Did you know
Its teeth never stop growing, all its life.
In Spain and Portugal it has declined so far that predators that depend on it, like the Iberian lynx and Spanish imperial eagle, have suffered too.
Often confused with
- Hare
Hares are bigger, with longer ears and long hind legs. They live alone above ground rather than in burrows, and their young are born furred with open eyes.
Sources
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