Ancestor: Oryctolagus cuniculus domesticus (Domestic Rabbit)
Descendants: Megors
Evolved: Around 60,000 Yh (By 100,000 Yh)
Extinct: By 2 Myh.
Location: Hot grasslands of South West Catland. Originated from populations that settled at the West and is progressing East.
Viable Habitat: Grassland and mixed grass and shrubland with mulberry.
Size: Average: 40cm, Up to: 80cm
Weight: Up to 10 kg
Dietary Needs: While it eats a bit more grass than it's ancestors did, it still subsists more on catnip, roots, young buds of the otherwise toxic elderberry and on the rare instances of mulberry that occur in it's habitat. They may also consume first-pass faeces for a second pass of digestion. They do this more when they have consumed a lot of grass but it can also restock the rabbit's gut microbiome after a purge to eat the droppings of healthy rabbits.
Life Cycle: They reach sexual maturity before they reach their full size. Older adult rabbits have an additional role beyond breeding, they can actually see off cat attacks. Thus, their companionship is favoured by other rabbits. However they also dominate over the other rabbits, taking the best grazing spots (which they need to, their caloric demands are many times that of a brand new adult). Males of this age may dominate in mating rights over the females. Fights between these males tend to be darker and bloodier than between younger more playful males, older males often have scars on their faces or missing chunks from their ears. Fights usually do not occur between younger and older males, usually a warning from the older one is enough. Life expectancy is expected to be no more than a year until they reach this age, then a full life of up to a decade is expected. Their fur gains contrast with age, becoming darker on top but staying light beneath.
Females can sometimes be competitive with each other but usually far less so. The survival of all, babies included, is improved when all rabbits keep lookout for each other. However if an area is overpopulated the older dominant females may get stressed and eat the babies of younger females out of instinct to ensure their own get enough space and she gets enough food to make lots of milk. Again, like the older males the older females play a protective roles against cats and this is one of the tolls they take for this service. Females past reproductive age don't do this but continue to benefit the group as a shield against cats.
Other: They carry themselves at a higher and more deliberately controlled distance from the ground. This allows them to minimize noise as they hop through the grass. They have fur on their feet to soften the noise of contact with the ground, while the claws act like the treads on soccer shoes gripping between blades of grass if the grass is flattened, slippery or otherwise an obstacle or hazard.
Their long ears not only direct downwards sound waves from above the grass, they're also important for radiating heat increasing how long it can be active during the day before it needs to use a burrow to escape the heat. Cats can still see well, but not as good in bright conditions compared to dim twilight conditions, so the grassy rabbits are using the "cover" of daylight to avoid being hunted while themselves being able to see better.