Editing Rabbit (section)

====Musculature====
[[File:Lateral view of rabbit hind limb.jpg|thumb|The rabbit's hind limb (lateral view) includes muscles involved in the quadriceps and hamstrings.]]

Rabbits have muscled hind legs that allow for maximum force, maneuverability, and acceleration that is divided into three main parts: foot, thigh, and leg. The hind limbs of a rabbit are an exaggerated feature. They are much longer and can provide more force than the forelimbs,<ref name=":6" /> which are structured like brakes to take the brunt of the landing after a leap.<ref name=":7">{{Citation |last1=Khan |first1=Madiha |title=Lagomorpha Locomotion |date=2021 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior |pages=1–6 |editor-last=Vonk |editor-first=Jennifer |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-3-319-47829-6_1199-1 |access-date=2024-10-08 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-319-47829-6_1199-1 |isbn=978-3-319-47829-6 |last2=Suh |first2=Angela |last3=Lee |first3=Jenny |last4=Granatosky |first4=Michael C. |editor2-last=Shackelford |editor2-first=Todd|url-access=subscription }}</ref> The force put out by the hind limbs is contributed by both the structural anatomy of the fusion of the tibia and fibula, and by the muscular features.<ref name=":6">{{Cite book |last1=Lumpkin |first1=Susan |last2=Seidensticker |first2=John |date=2011 |title=Rabbits: the animal answer guide |publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press |isbn=978-1-4214-0126-3|location=Baltimore|oclc=794700391}}</ref>

Bone formation and removal, from a cellular standpoint, is directly correlated to hind limb muscles. Action pressure from muscles creates force that is then distributed through the skeletal structures. Rabbits that generate less force, putting less stress on bones are more prone to osteoporosis due to bone [[rarefaction]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Geiser |first1=Max |last2=Trueta |first2=Joseph |title=Muscle action, bone rarefaction and bone formation |journal=The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. British Volume |date=May 1958 |volume=40-B |issue=2 |pages=282–311 |doi=10.1302/0301-620X.40B2.282 |pmid=13539115 |doi-access=free }}</ref> In rabbits, the more fibers in a muscle, the more resistant to fatigue. For example, [[hare]]s have a greater resistance to fatigue than [[Cottontail rabbit|cottontails]]. The muscles of rabbit's hind limbs can be classified into four main categories: [[hamstring]]s, [[Quadriceps femoris muscle|quadriceps]], [[dorsiflexors]], or [[plantar flexors]]. The quadriceps muscles are in charge of force production when jumping. Complementing these muscles are the hamstrings, which aid in short bursts of action. These muscles play off of one another in the same way as the plantar flexors and dorsiflexors, contributing to the generation and actions associated with force.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lieber |first1=Richard L. |last2=Blevins |first2=Field T. |title=Skeletal muscle architecture of the rabbit hindlimb: Functional implications of muscle design |journal=Journal of Morphology |date=January 1989 |volume=199 |issue=1 |pages=93–101 |doi=10.1002/jmor.1051990108 |pmid=2921772 |s2cid=25344889 }}</ref>