Apparently, we need to talk about bunnies. Specifically, the fact that rabbits do not lay eggs. Yes, we realize that sounds crazy. And no, we are not kidding.
According to Google AdWords, the phrases Do bunnies lay eggs and Do rabbits lay eggs each receive between 1,000 and 10,000 average monthly searches. That's a pretty big number, which leads us to believe that people sincerely do not know.
We can't say we're surprised. After all, a National Dairy Council survey last year showed that a depressing number of Americans think chocolate milk comes from brown cows.
Allow us to clear this up: No, bunnies do not lay eggs. As placental mammals, rabbits develop embryos inside a uterus and, after a pregnancy lasting about 31 to 33 days, give birth to a litter of often 12 or more bunnies.
If you found your way to this article by searching that very question, don't feel too bad. There's probably a reason for your confusion, and that's Easter. The Christian holiday, of course, has two very famous symbols, bunnies and eggs, with the former delivering the latter.
So why is there an Easter bunny when rabbits do not lay eggs? The idea actually comes from a pagan celebration of spring, which was eventually linked to the religious holiday. According to the legend, following a long winter, the goddess of spring, Eastre, turned a frozen bird into a snow hare that could lay colorful eggs. Rabbits' reputation for rapid reproduction made them the perfect symbol for spring, but alas, the connection between bunnies and eggs is quite strange in the end.
