If you've watched the Looney Tunes, you may have noticed that bunny (usually a bunny), rabbit (or wabbit, as Elmer Fudd calls it), and hare (as in various clever episode titles) are Referred to as Bugs Bunny. While this may have been done to serve the story, the casual interchange of different terms may have led many people who grew up with the show to believe that all rabbits are hares, and vice versa. In fact, rabbits and hares are different. The common names of some species also contribute to this confusion. For example, jackrabbits are actually hares, while hares and hares are rabbits. So, how do we really tell the difference between the two groups?
What is the difference between a rabbit and a hare? There are some key differences between them, namely their size, how they live and grow, and their preferred habitats.
The two can be distinguished by observing differences in body size, life history, and preferred habitat. Generally speaking, rabbits are smaller than hares and have shorter ears. After a gestation period of 30-31 days, they are born without fur and with eyes closed. Rabbits prefer to hide from their enemies rather than run away. They prefer habitats consisting of trees and shrubs, living in burrows in the soil. Hares, by comparison, are larger and are born with their fur fully developed and their eyes open after a gestation period of about 42 days. They like to run and prefer open habitats such as grasslands, and nest in small open depressions.
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