Mary Overmohle, age 9, of Storm Lake, Iowa, for her question:
CAN RABBITS SWIM?
Rabbits and hares were once classified with rats and mice as rodents because of doubling of incisors in the upper jaw. Now they are placed in a distinct order, the Lagomorpha.
Incisors of rodents have enamel on the front only and in rabbits it is found on the backs of teeth as well. Rabbits have inferior gnawing abilities to mice and rats.
While gnawing is one of the rabbit's favorite pastimes, swimming is not. The furry creature would much rather spend his time on dry land. If called upon, however, he can indeed make an emergency swim that will get him across a creek and out of danger.
There is one variety of rabbit, however, that enjoys the water and spends a great deal of time in it. It's the swamp rabbit that can be found on river bottoms and swampy woods all the way from Georgia west to the middle of Texas and north to Oklahoma and Illinois.
Our friend the swamp rabbit dwells in swamps, marshes and low, brushy woods near the bayous, making trails that often lead through shallow water. They are excellent swimmers, and when chased by dogs they will swim back and forth across creeks.
Another relative who also enjoys the water is the marsh rabbit that makes his home in the lowlands along rivers and the coast of the Southeastern states from the Dismal Swamp in Virginia to Florida and west to Alabama.
The marsh rabbit is slightly larger than the average cottontail. It readily takes to the water.
In Florida and the adjacent coast islands and north along the east coast to San Mateo, another related rabbit is found: the Carolina swamp rabbit. He's the smallest of the swamp rabbits and is somewhat clumsy.
Still another relative is called the coast swamp rabbit. This fellow can be found only in a narrow belt of swamps and marshes along the Gulf coast from Mississippi through Louisiana to Matagorda Bay, Texas.
A young rabbit is born deaf, blind and almost naked, but after 30 days he has become independent and can take care of himself in any situation. Except for a few who live in the swampy lowlands, most rabbits only take to the water in an emergency.