Essay On Lagomorphs

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Evolution of rabbits
Rabbits, they come from the same group as hares called Lagomorph. Lagomorphs evolved from Asia at least 40 million years ago and was classified as rodents until 1912, where scientist found out they have special features that rodents didn’t have, such as 4 incisors instead of 2. The different species of rabbits and hares are due to the break-up of tectonic plates during this time period, creating continental drift, hence leading to adaptive radiation. From the start of its life, rabbits have evolved to what they look like now. Lagomorphs were animals built for very fast movement, just like rabbits and hares today; they also have big ears and eyes mounted near the top of their head to allow better visibility and hearing of their predators and 2 pairs of functional incisors for food. Current rabbits are very similar to their ancestors; they too have long ears and eyes mounted near the top …show more content…

They lived in holes underground to hide from their predators at night, they run quickly back to their holes when they sense predators nearby. But after 50 million years they still live in the same habitat, because this habitat has helped them survive for a long time, their holes are too small for most of their predators, and it help keeps them warm and dry. Rabbits however have made holes bigger than they used to be due to their increased body size.
So the evolution of rabbits have evolved from little cute animals that were quite vulnerable to their predators, to animals that have evolved well to adapt to their new and more complicated habitat and can even out smart their predators. Rabbits still proof to be one of the most adaptable animals on earth today, they have experience great change and have coped with the change well. That’s why the population of rabbits have only decreased a little compared to other animals on which have decreased or changed so much that they are no long what they