Short answers, pulled from the story.
Scientists moved rabbits from the order Rodentia into Lagomorpha in 1912. This change recognized that rabbits possess two extra incisors behind their front teeth, a trait rodents lack entirely.
Fossil records trace the earliest ancestor of both rabbits and hares to Mongolia, dating back 55 million years. Molecular biology studies from the 2000s confirmed a common lineage for lagomorphs and rodents within the clade Glires.
The family Leporidae now contains more than 70 extant species across 11 distinct genera. One genus, Lepus, holds all hare species, while Oryctolagus includes the European rabbit.
Rabbits cannot vomit so intestinal blockages from low-fiber diets can become fatal. Their digestive system processes hard-to-digest fiber by fermenting it in the cecum and reingesting nutrient-rich droppings called cecotropes.
Humans kept European rabbits as livestock starting in ancient Rome during the first century BC. Selective breeding began in the Middle Ages to create breeds suited for meat or fur production.
The average longevity of wild eastern cottontails ranges between one to five years while domesticated records show lifespans up to 18 years. Rabbits have been launched into space orbit despite being small mammals.