126 Practical Zoology. 



HOME STUDY OF RABBITS. 



1. For this study use a wild rabbit caged, a tame rabbit, or a 

 Belgian hare. Study many of the points to which attention has 

 been called in the suggestions for the study of wild rabbits in 

 their homes, such as the modes of hopping, jumping, running, 

 modes of moving the feet, the tracks, etc. Study also the vari- 

 ous attitudes of rest and motion, of timidity, of effort at con- 

 cealment, of hunger, the use of the ears and eyes. Do they give 

 any signals when alarmed ? Do tame rabbits recognize dogs as 

 enemies ? After an alarm do rabbits soon become quiet, or 

 does fright have a more lasting effect ? Has a rabbit any means 

 of defense against enemies ? Are the claws ever used when it is 

 attacked by a dog ? Or when it is seized by a man, as when 

 pulled out of a brush heap or a hole ? Do rabbits ever fight 

 each other ? 



2. Find what food the rabbits prefer. Does a rabbit eat 

 much, relatively? Does it eat rapidly or slowly? Watch the 

 process of eating. How do the jaws move ? What is the use 

 of the "harelip"? If possible, in this connection, get a well- 

 cleaned rabbit's skull, and study the teeth and the hinge by 

 which the jaw joins the skull. Why is there a vacant space 

 between the gnawing teeth and the grinding teeth ? How are the 

 front teeth kept sharp ? How do the ridges run on the grinding 

 surfaces of the back teeth ? Why is this so ? 



3. Is a rabbit's eye large or small, in proportion to its size? 

 Is its sense of sight keen ? Test this in various ways. What is 

 the shape of the pupil of the eye ? Is it relatively large or 

 small ? Does it vary with the amount of light ? Do you ever 

 see color in the pupil ? If so, in what situations ? Is the iris 

 of the same color in all rabbits ? Compare wild and tame rab- 

 bits in this respect. Test a rabbit's sense of hearing. Is the fact 

 that a wild rabbit often sits motionless in its form, sometimes 

 till actually kicked out, any proof that it did not hear or see the 

 hunter ? What is it probably thinking in such a situation ? 



