Thursday, February 20, 2020

Bunny Ears

This bunny looks as if he is on high alert and his ears indicate he has heard something straight ahead. photo credit Rabbits' sense of hearing is their most vital sense. Their large ears can detect sounds from a long way off. But the key to rabbits' hearing ability is their ability to swivel independently. This helps the ears funnel sounds from every direction. More information on their 5 senses here. I never knew their ears swiveled, and independently at that, did you?

The life expectancy of a wild rabbit is much shorter than our domestic pets. In fact, a wild rabbit usually only lives for about a year….sometimes two.

Wild rabbits don't live very long because of a variety of different factors. Disease, harsh winter conditions, lack of food and predators all influence how long the rabbit will live.

Although it seems harsh, this is nature's way of balancing the rabbit population. via

6 comments:

JudyMac said...

I would love to see the little bunny again who came to eat from my hand a few years ago. If you ever get a chance to sit and watch one for a while, you might get to see their ears swivel. Bunnies are so sweet. I know that they do damage to our yards and gardens, but I can’t imagine why anyone would want to harm one.

Pam said...

We live in a rural area with a pond and creek nearby, so there are lots of bunnies on our farm. Yes, they can be pests, but I enjoy watching them so much! This might sound strange, but our bunnies don't seem to be afraid of us at all. If they're out in the grass, eating, we can walk right by them and they're not bothered at all. Often, I put out fruit and vegetable scraps, and they really seem to enjoy them. Rosemary, thank you for sharing such interesting facts about rabbits. I've never researched them, so this is news to me!

JEANNE ILLENYE said...

Bunnies are so beautiful and sweet...and yes, they eat a lot of my gardens but that's okay. I say the same with the deer, groundhogs, etc. because their beauty is worth a few dozen flowers...which will grow back! One little tip for those who don't want them grazing the flowers, FEED THEM!! Just put out some rabbit food and they'll gladly choose that instead of the garden blooms! That's what we have done with great success.

Lisa D. said...

I love bunnies. At one time I had two pet bunnies, and everything you've ever heard about bunnies is true. They eat, poop, and make lots of baby bunnies. Did you know that bunnies will sell their sole for a banana? They absolutely go bananas over bananas! Bananas are to rabbits just like catnip is to cats. (Remember this next time you need to catch a bunny.)

Penelope Bianchi said...

I treasure them! They can eat whatever they want......they really don't like my favorite plants....lavender, and other native plants here!
We had the hideous and destructive debris flow......wiped all the small animals except rats! Getting some rescue bunnies from the Wildlife Care Network......here. They rescue thousands of animals every single year! Lucky us!
We have had 4 raccoons.....4 skunks......lots of grown ducklings.....(18), I am begging for more! We also have a hen sitting on eggs......we may be able to bring the population back to normal!

I am crossing my fingers!

The Queen Vee said...

Thanks for the bunny tutorial and also even more bunny info via the comments. We used to see bunnies, chipmunks, deer, squirrels and once even a bobcat when we lived in Virginia. Haven't seen any of those animals in our neighborhood since moving to Utah. There are lots of those animals up in the mountains, out on the island in the Great Salt Lake near us and on the prairie. We do enjoy cows, horses and chickens on local farms near us. Out on the island we get to see antelope, one of the largest herds of buffalo in the US and a huge variety of birds. Every place has something. I don't miss the deer living so close, in Virginia they caused such problems with Lymes disease which is so debilitating.