Pelecitus meridionaleporinus n. sp. from the Tehuantepec jackrabbit is described. The new species differs from Pelecitus helicinus (Molin, 1860) in having delicate transverse striations, a salient vulva, and a readily apparent preesophageal ring; P. helicinus has teardrop cells around the vulva, which are lacking in the species presently described. The new species is different from Pelecitus sc...

We report the oldest known record of Lagomorpha, based on distinctive, small ankle bones (calcaneus and talus) from Early Eocene deposits (Middle Ypresian equivalent, ca 53 Myr ago) of Gujarat, west-central India. The fossils predate the oldest previously known crown lagomorphs by several million years and extend the record of lagomorphs on the Indian subcontinent by 35 Myr. The bones show a mo...

In leporids, IL17A had been implicated in the host defense against extracellular pathogens, such as Francisella tularensis that infects hares and rabbits and causes the zoonotic disease tularemia. Here, we studied IL17A from five lagomorphs, European rabbit, pygmy rabbit, brush rabbit, European brown hare, and American pika. We observed that this protein is highly conserved between these specie...

The repertoires of bitter-taste receptor (T2R) gene have been described for several animal species, but these data are still scarce for Lagomorphs. The aim of the present work is to identify potential repertoires of T2R in several Lagomorph species, covering a wide geographical distribution. We studied these genes in Lepus timidus, L. europaeus, Oryctolagus cuniculus algirus, Romerolagus diazi,...

There is extensive overlap in diseases affecting these species (especially infectious disease) and other rodents such as rats and mice, although each species does have one or two unique spontaneous diseases to call their own. When confronted with disease presentation in this species, the observer is well-cautioned to consider the presentation in light of their experience with other rodents and ...