Amami rabbit
Lagomorpha / Family: Leporidae
- Total length
- 35-55 cm
- Range
- Amami-Oshima and Tokunoshima
As a herbivore, it feeds on grass sprouts, fruits, and bark. It has a habit of defecating in open areas. In the diorama, an adult rabbit is seen defecating while its young is feeding on fallen leaves.
It has claws on its limbs specially adapted for digging burrows. On Tokunoshima, some individuals have distinctive white markings on their feet and are affectionately called "shirotabi," meaning "white socks."
Unusually for a rabbit, this species calls to each other with a high-pitched "puiiii!" sound. Mother rabbits visit their young, who stay in separate burrows, every other night at nearly the same time to feed them milk.
Habitat of This Animal:
B:Forest along the mountain ridge - B2:Deep forest
As time passes from the felling of trees, trees in the forest will grow taller and thicker. Tall trees like Castanopsis, a representative tree of forests in Tokunoshima Island, form the forest canopy. Different layers of plants are formed beneath it, including medium-to-small trees and bottom weeds, and the forest floor becomes gradually darker. Through such a process, the forest will become deeper, supporting the fauna of Tokunoshima Island.
This B2:Deep forest