transcript

Speaker 1:
[00:08] Are you ready to explore God's wild and wonderful world? Welcome to the Nat Theo Podcast. I'm your host, Eryn Lynum. I'm a certified Master Naturalist, Bible teacher and author. And I am so excited to dive into God's written Word, the Bible and His created world with you. What is one of your favorite creatures to see right around where you live? Maybe in your yard or neighborhood, or at a nearby park. I love watching rabbits jump around, rest, and nibble on grass in my yard. They look so fluffy and cute, and are such a joy to see. There is a trail near my home that I love to hike and run on. One thing I love about this trail is it has so many cottontail rabbits. The trail is surrounded by a special plant that we have here in Colorado called rabbit brush. These bushes, which grow bright yellow flowers in the late summer, are perfect hiding spots and shelters for rabbits. So as I hike or run, there are rabbits darting from one rabbit brush to another. Today, we are discovering God's incredible designs in these excellent hoppers. And tomorrow, we have a special guest, SD. Smith, joining us to share how God's rabbits inspired him as an author to create an entire series of books for kids that our family loves called the Green Ember series. So stay tuned tomorrow for some rabbit inspiration with SD. Smith. Today, we are learning all about a cute rabbit commonly found across North America called the cottontail rabbit. Here is our trail map. Are you ready? We are going to learn, why does a rabbit wiggle its nose? Do rabbits hibernate? How do rabbits know the way to safety? And how can we run to God's protection? Before we hit the trail, let's thank our sponsor who helped make this lesson possible, Master Books. Master Books has a wild and wonderful library of nature books for kids that give all credit and glory to God. They are committed to helping families grow in faith, wisdom, and wonder together. Discover God's designs as you venture through books like Dragons of the Deep, Dinosaurs by Design, 44 Animals of the Bible, or Bugs, Big and Small, God Made Them All, Every book is written to cultivate wonder and nurture faith. Our family has many kids books by Master Books in our library, and I never have to worry about what my kids are reading when I see a Master Books logo on the cover. Explore all of Master Books curriculum and books for all ages from a biblical worldview at masterbooks.com or at the link in our show notes. It's time for our trivia question. A rabbit might beat you in a staring competition because it only blinks A once a minute, B once every two minutes, C once every four minutes, or D once every five minutes. Again, a rabbit might beat you in a staring competition because it only blinks A once a minute, B once every two minutes, C once every four minutes, or D once every five minutes. Take a guess and we will find out at the end of today's lesson. And Nat Theo Club members, after today's lesson, click over to the bonus video where we will learn how God designed mother rabbits to care for their babies. Find that bonus video in your Nat Theo Club dashboard or at the link in our show notes. All right, let's hit the trail. If you watch a rabbit for long enough, you might notice it's nose wiggling. Why do rabbits wiggle their noses? Do they have an itchy nose? Or do they need to sneeze? Nope, rabbits do not need someone to pass them a tissue. They are wiggling their noses for a different reason, a reason that helps them stay alive. You see, before we get into all of this nose wiggling, we should understand something about rabbits. It might look like they live laid back, comfortable lives. I love watching them rest in my front yard or nibbling on grasses and flowers. It might appear as though they don't have a care in the world, but that is far from the truth. Rabbits are on the menu for many animals. Can you guess which animals might be hunting rabbits? I'm going to play music for a few moments, and I want you to list all the animals you can think of that might try to eat rabbits. Are you ready? Did you think of any animals that might have rabbits on the menu? Some include foxes, coyotes, wolves, mountain lions, badgers, snakes, hawks, owls, and there are many others. This might be sad to think about, as rabbits seem so cute and so peaceful. But in a world that is cursed by sin, some animals hunt and eat each other, and rabbits are an important food source for many other animals. And there are a lot of rabbits to be had. On average, a mother rabbit called a doe can have three to four litters of babies every year, and each litter of babies can have around three to eight babies. That is up to 32 babies a year, and sometimes more. If all the rabbit babies survived, the land would be overrun with rabbits. There would be rabbits everywhere we looked. Instead, some rabbits become important food for other animals, helping to keep God's creation healthy and balanced. However, God's plan was always to have wonderful rabbits in the world. He designed rabbits in a very smart way to stay safe, so that many rabbits survive and give birth to more baby rabbits. This is good news, because it means that wild animals that depend on rabbits have enough to eat. And also, we still have enough rabbits to enjoy watching around our yards and neighborhoods and natural areas. How did God engineer rabbits to stay safe from all of these predators? That is where all the nose wiggling comes in. Rabbits wiggle their nose to collect smells around them. You see, rabbits have super sensor noses. God filled a rabbit's nose with something called olfactory sensors. These little sensors in a rabbit's nose are excellent at picking up smells and sending messages back to a rabbit's brain. When a rabbit wiggles its nose, more air and smells in the air can pass over all of those olfactory sensors, giving the rabbit helpful information about what's around, including if a predator might be approaching. Us humans also have olfactory sensors in our noses, and a lot of them. Do you want to guess how many olfactory sensors are inside a human's nose? Do you have a guess? Five to six million. That's a lot of sensors in our noses for collecting smells. But rabbits have far more. How many olfactory sensors do you think a rabbit has in its nose? Rabbits have around 100 million olfactory sensors in their nose. They can smell over 20 times better than a human being. God gave rabbits other amazing senses to help them stay safe as well. Their large eyes are on the sides of their heads, which helps them see almost 360 degrees, or almost all the way around themselves. With their eyes placed up high, they can also see above themselves to notice if maybe a large bird is circling above, looking for a snack below. Rabbits have a small blind spot directly in front of their face and directly behind them, but it doesn't hold them back from finding food to munch on thanks to their excellent smelling abilities. And what about those big ears? Rabbits also have excellent hearing. Have you ever seen a cottontail rabbit's big, tall ears? Those big ears can help a rabbit hear noises from around two miles or over three kilometers away. Each ear can swivel in an opposite direction at the same time, helping a rabbit pinpoint exactly where a sound is coming from. It's not only a rabbit's wiggling nose that might catch your attention, but also the fact that they are active and hopping around all year long. Which brings up the question, does a rabbit hibernate? It might seem like an animal such as a rabbit should hibernate, but they do not. So rabbits do not hibernate, and here's another surprising fact about them. They are not rodents. Rabbits might seem similar to squirrels, mice, chipmunks, prairie dogs, or other rodents, but they are unique and different. For a long time, they were listed in the rodent category, but then in the year 1912, they were re-categorized. Rabbits belong to a group of mammals called lagomorpha. Lagomorpha is an order or category of animals that includes rabbits, hares, and pika. Why were rabbits moved out of the rodent category and into a new lagomorpha category? Because of two extra little teeth they have right behind their two top front teeth. And secondly, because they cannot turn their front hands inward to grasp something, like a squirrel who is a rodent might hold an acorn. We learned about lagomorpha in lesson 91. Why do pika pick flowers? So rabbits are lagomorpha that stay active all year long, just like the other lagomorphs, including hares and pika. And God designed them well for their wintery habitats. First, they are very resourceful and smart in finding food. Rabbits are herbivores. Do you know what a herbivore is? This is my trick for remembering what a herbivore is. Herbivore sounds like herbs. Herbs are plants. Herbivores only eat plants, such as leaves, grass, fruits, or vegetables. In the spring and summer, rabbits enjoy munching on flowers, grasses, clovers, and other plants. But what about in the winter, when the grass is brown and perhaps hidden underneath snow, and there are no wild flowers to be found? Rabbits will eat tree bark, twigs, buds, dried grass, and even pine needles. They simply eat what they can find to survive the colder months. Imagine how excited they must be in the spring, when the grass turns green and wild flowers fill the land. Another way God designed rabbits to stay active year round was by giving them thick winter coats of fur and slippers. Not slippers like we might wear, that slip on and off our feet. But rabbits have very furry feet that help keep them warm as they spend a lot of time in the snow. I love finding and following rabbit tracks in the snow. If you go out to explore in the morning after a fresh snow, you will likely find rabbit tracks zigzagging this way and that. A rabbit's tracks show its two small front feet and its two large long back feet. But in the track, the back feet are in front. Can you think of why their back feet are in front of their front feet? It is because as a rabbit runs, they leap forward and place their small front paws on the ground. Then, their long back feet are pulled forward and land on the ground just ahead of where their front feet were. Which brings us to another way God engineered rabbits to stay safe from many predators. And that is by running away very quickly and smartly. When rabbits see, hear, or sense danger nearby, what do they do? Sometimes, they will freeze in place, like a statue, so that hopefully the predator does not notice them. And they are very good at this. I have often spotted a rabbit at the very last second, realizing I had not seen it before because it blended in with the habitat around it and it wasn't moving. And I am sure that I have walked by many rabbits without noticing them at all. But sometimes, freezing in place is not enough, and they need to run to safety, and they are also designed very well for this. Because of their long, strong back legs, rabbits are fast runners. They can also turn very quickly. And perhaps what helps them the most in making a quick getaway is how well they know an area. Rabbits have a home territory, so an area that they stay in and find food in. The home territory is usually around 2.5 to 7 acres big, so really not that large at all. And a rabbit knows every inch of its territory. If you have rabbits in your yard, they probably know your yard better than you do. They memorize every area, and they create pathways throughout their home territory, just like you might create a path through a grassy or wooded area to get to a neighbor's house or to a fort. Rabbits create a network of trails within their home territory that connect to their favorite feeding areas and to safe refuges, like in rocks or a bush. If they are out feeding and a predator approaches, the rabbit can make a fast getaway using its pathways to retreat to safety. Just like a deer path or even a human made path. As the rabbit uses its pathways regularly, the pathways stay worn down and ready for use when they need them. Do you have rabbits in your yard? If you do, did you know that so much rabbit activity is going on around you? It's fun to think about a rabbit in the yard knowing so much about the area and using it in such smart ways. So listeners, let us remember a couple of important things about rabbits. First, they are a much needed food source for many types of animals, and that's okay. It is good and helpful. Many other animals survive and nature stays more in balance thanks to an abundance of rabbits. Secondly, God designed rabbits to sense danger and to run to safety very well so that not all rabbits get eaten. We still have many rabbits to watch and enjoy in God's wild and wonderful world. Do you remember at the beginning of our lesson, I shared with you about a trail that I really enjoy exploring near my home? I shared about the many cottontail rabbits that live there and used the rabbit brush bushes for their safety. I watched the cottontails nibbling on grass and flowers, and then if those rabbits get spooked, they use their network of pathways to run to the safety of a rabbit brush nearby. Just as a rabbit memorizes paths to safety, we can learn, memorize, and use pathways to God's safety. A rabbit trusts in the cover of a bush, or an underground burrow, or a rocky crevice to keep it safe. But we have God himself, the amazing creator who designed rabbits and who created us wonderfully. He is our refuge. Proverbs 18.10 says, The name of the Lord is a strong fortress. The godly run to him and are safe. When do you think we might need to run to God to stay safe? Maybe when we are scared and we don't know what to do? Or maybe when other people say mean things to us, including if they tease us for things that we believe? Or if we are tempted to sin and do something that goes against God's ways? Think about a rabbit using its pathways again and again. The path gets worn down and the rabbit memorizes the way, perhaps even getting faster every time it runs to safety. We can do the same. The more we go back to God, the more familiar we become with the path. And the quicker we can retreat to safety instead of perhaps staying in danger's way. Do you know a really good way to memorize a network of paths back to God's refuge? By memorizing His Word, the Bible. Psalm 119 11 says, I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Listeners, every time we run to God, the path becomes more familiar. Let's practice running to Him for safety and for everything that we need. God is our perfect safe place. Psalm 121 verse 2 says, My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. The same God who designed rabbits with amazing smell, sight, and hearing. The same God who spoke every star into the universe and who created every creature just right. Who designed everything in heaven and on earth. He is our help and we can run to him and be safe. Remember, my help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. It's time to answer a question from one of our listeners. Here is today's question.

Speaker 2:
[21:08] Hi, my name is Saroon. I'm 10 years old and I live in Georgia. I want to know, why do axolotls have funny tentacles on the sides of their head?

Speaker 1:
[21:20] Thanks for your question, Saroon. Why do axolotls have funny tentacles on the sides of their heads? The feathery tentacle-like structures on the side of an axolotl's head are actually gills that enable the axolotl to breathe underwater. In axolotl's gills are not like the gills you might see on other animals. For example, fish have gills, but theirs are inside their body and are protected by a special covering. These are the little slits that you see on the side of a fish, including sharks. Axolotls have external gills, which means they are on the outside of their body. Axolotl's feathery gills flap and flutter in the water, giving them access to as much fresh water as they can touch. Inside each gill are blood vessels that soak up the oxygen in the water. Just like God designed you to breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide, he made an axolotl's gills to do the same. Their gills absorb oxygen from the water and then release carbon dioxide back out. I love watching the funny gills swaying atop the heads of my three pet axolotls. Thanks for your great question, Saroon. Stay curious about God's wild and wonderful world. And Nat Theo Club members, remember to click over to the bonus video to learn how God designed mother rabbits to protect and care for their babies. Alright, it's time to answer our trivia question. A rabbit might beat you in a staring competition because it only blinks A once a minute, B once every two minutes, C once every four minutes, or D once every five minutes. The answer is D. A rabbit blinks around every five minutes or around 10 to 12 times an hour. This is another way that God designed rabbits to always be on the lookout for potential dangers so they can stay safe. Also, why you probably could not beat a rabbit in a staring competition. Now, it's your turn to explore. Go on a walk in the morning and look for rabbits. Can you count how many rabbits you see in your neighborhood, or in a park, or in a natural area? Can you see one wiggling its nose and collecting smells, or maybe hopping away by swinging its long back feet in front of its little front feet? Watch and marvel at how God designed all of his amazing rabbits. Thanks so much for listening. I hope you enjoyed this lesson on rabbits. If you did, please take a moment to send it to a friend and subscribe, rate, and review Nat Theo wherever you listen. Until next time, keep exploring God's wild and wonderful world. Imagine exploring the wonders of creation while growing in faith. Inside the Nat Theo Club, families discover God's creation through kid-friendly science, devotional content, nature journaling, hands-on activities, bonus videos, and more, all rooted in biblical truth. With flexible options for ages four to 14, your children can explore birds, insects, reptiles, plants, and other wonders of God's creation at their own pace, with new content added every week. Celebrate each discovery with certificates of completion in our brand new Bible and Nature Unit Studies. The Nat Theo Club is a meaningful, wonder-filled way to help your family reconnect the dots between creation and creator. Visit nattheo.com/club to learn more.