Rabbits, hares and pikas belong to a family of animals called “Lagomorphs” or order Lagomorpha. Rabbits and hares belong to the family Leporidae and pikas belong to the family Ochotonidae. While rabbits and hares have long ears, a short tail and very strong hind limbs that give them that characteristic bounding motion, pikas are smaller, have shorter, rounded ears, no external tail to speak of and smaller hind limbs that give them more of a scampering motion. Lagomorphs are small to medium-sized herbivores that tend to live underground. At one time, they were included in the Order Rodentia since both orders possess a set of incisors that grow throughout their lives. However, lagomorphs also have a second pair of incisors that are set directly behind the growing pair in the upper jaw. This trait is specific to lagomorphs. Now, thanks to species gene coding, we know that these two orders have very distinct and separate evolutionary histories. Rabbits are an important part of the ecosystems that they inhabit. Without them, many prey animals wouldn’t survive. This disease could kill off a necessary food source for coyotes, hawks, eagles, bears and other prey animals. You can reach me on the website at www.causeofdeath100secs.net or you can email me at Jackie@causeofdeath100secs.net. My Link Tree can be found at: https://linktr.ee/CauseofDeathpod Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Show Notes: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/animal_health/fs-rhdv2.pdf https://www.avma.org/resources-tools/animal-health-and-welfare/animal-health/rabbit-hemorrhagic-disease https://cwhl.vet.cornell.edu/disease/rabbit-hemorrhagic-disease http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/vet/RHDV.htm https://datcp.wi.gov/Pages/Programs_Services/RabbitHemorrhagicDisease.aspx https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/diseases/rabbit-hemorrhagic/ https://veterinaryresearch.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1297-9716-43-12 https://www.cfsph.iastate.edu/Factsheets/pdfs/rabbit_hemorrhagic_disease.pdf https://veterinaryresearch.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13567-015-0245-5#:~:text=RHDV%20is%20a%20non%2Denveloped,capsid%20subunit%2C%20the%20VP60%20protein. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9541616/ https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/pharmacology-toxicology-and-pharmaceutical-science/rabbit-hemorrhagic-disease#:~:text=Viral%20haemorrhagic%20disease%20(or%20rabbit,and%20faeces%20from%20infected%20rabbits. https://veterinaryresearch.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1297-9716-43-12#:~:text=Transmission%20of%20RHDV%20may%20occur,vector%2Dborne%20transmission%20by%20scavenging https://www.cfsph.iastate.edu/Factsheets/pdfs/rabbit_hemorrhagic_disease.pdf https://veterinaryresearch.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1297-9716-43-12 https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/diseases/rabbit-hemorrhagic/ https://datcp.wi.gov/Pages/Programs_Services/RabbitHemorrhagicDisease.aspx http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/vet/RHDV.htm https://cwhl.vet.cornell.edu/disease/rabbit-hemorrhagic-disease https://www.avma.org/resources-tools/animal-health-and-welfare/animal-health/rabbit-hemorrhagic-disease https://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/animal_health/fs-rhdv2.pdf https://www.britannica.com/animal/lagomorph Darkcast Network – Promo by Yours Truly Support my sponsors! It ensures that Sweet Pea can eat! This month’s sponsor is True Leaf Market. For the last fifty years, True Leaf Market has offered a huge selection of non-GMO seeds including vegetables, grains, flowers, cover crops, specialty seeds, sprouting and microgreen seeds and, of course, my favorite, herbs. I want you to succeed in your gardening ventures, too, so I’m teaming up with True Leaf through June 30 to offer you $10 off any order of $50 or more when you use promo code COD10. Go to www.trueleafmarket.com and use the promo code COD10 for $10 off any order of $50 or more and don’t forget you’ll also get free shipping on orders of $75! This offer is only available through June 30, so get your seeds today! The True Crime and Paranormal Podca