Eating:
* Grasping food: Their tongues are long and flexible, allowing them to easily grab and pull food into their mouths. They have small, backward-facing spines on their tongues that help them hold onto even small pieces of food.
* Prehension: Rabbits use their tongues to manipulate food within their mouths, positioning it for chewing.
* Drinking: They lap up water with their tongues, creating a suction to draw the liquid into their mouths.
Grooming:
* Cleaning their fur: Rabbits groom themselves meticulously, and their tongues play a key role. They use their tongues to lick their fur, removing dirt, debris, and parasites.
* Keeping their noses clean: They also lick their noses to keep them free of mucus and debris.
Social interactions:
* Marking territory: Rabbits often lick objects and other rabbits as a way of marking territory.
* Communication: They can use their tongue to express different emotions. For example, licking the lips is often a sign of nervousness or anxiety.
Other:
* Cooling down: Rabbits can lick their paws to help cool themselves down in hot weather.
Interesting fact: Rabbits have a small patch of skin on their upper palate called a "hard palate," which is covered in tiny projections called "papillae." These papillae, along with their tongues, help rabbits grind their food efficiently.