Rabbits, which are members of the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, are notorious for their reproductive capabilities and have been bred by human since the days of ancient Rome. Unlike other animals that are widely exploited for their fur and meat, the prolific animals are in little danger of becoming extinct.

Native to the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia, numerous species of rabbits have been classified. One of the best known is the cottontail, which is widely found in North America and is so-named because of the white undersurface of its tail. Cottontail rabbits generally live in open areas in burrows they construct or that are abandoned by other animals. The gregarious European, or Old World, rabbit, however, tends to live among brush or thickets in warrens comprised of the burrows of many different rabbits.

Domestic breeding efforts have resulted in numerous varieties of rabbits that do not occur in nature. The Castor Rex, for instance, was developed in the early 1900s as a type of rabbit that has a coat that contains no guard hairs. Perhaps better known, however, is the Angora rabbit, which exhibits very fine hair with a soft texture and an exceptional luster. The hair of Angora rabbits is also unusually long because of the presence of a recessive gene that prolongs the active phase of the hair growth cycle. Of significant economic value, the hair of Angora rabbits is generally utilized to fabricate items such as luxurious fur coats and wraps.

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