Perhaps one of the most notable things about bunny rabbit is their affinity for hopping , but did you know not all rabbits can do this ? A rare domesticize breed known as sauteur d’Alfort coney ditched jump in favor of a rather bizarre method of motivity that essentially see them do a handstand . They can walk along on their front paws like this ostensibly without much bother .
The normal pace of jumping rabbits is call saltatorial motivity , which is also seen inkangaroos , hares , and some gnawer . young research published in the journalPLOS Geneticswanted to pin down why the sauteur d’Alforts did n’t present saltatorial motive power , so they bred some with regular hopping rabbits to find out . By comparing the genotypes of their offspring and reflecting on how this influenced their phenotype ( handstand or startle ) they were able to identify that there was one key gene mutant that decided to hop , or not to hop .
The offspring ’s genomes revealed that the handstand developmental mar centered around a specific mutation in the RAR related orphan sense organ B ( RORB ) . In the compositor’s case of jumping buns , the RORB protein is uncouth across their intact nervous organisation , but the genetic mutation slashed the number of nerve cell in the spinal cord that produce RORB , culminate in the sauteur d’Alfort ’s topsy - turvy strut .
former research found that RORB also had an strange burden on mouse motivity , who lost their fluid , rhythmical gait when a similar genetic mutation to that of the sauteur d’Alforts was present in their genome .
" This study provides a uncommon example of an abnormal gait behavior mapped to a unmarried base change and the first description of a gene required for saltatorial motive power , " the author close in astatement . " It further demonstrates the importance of the RORB protein for the normal wiring of the spinal corduroy , consistent with previous studies in black eye . "
Sauteur d’Alforts are n’t the only surprisal gymnasts of the animal kingdom . In 2015 , an unmanned camera in the Happy Valley of Saguaro National Park in Arizona , captured askunk doing a handstandin the middle of the night .
share by the National Parks Service , it look fishy but is actually an human activity of aggression used to intimidate its foes . It does this to look orotund and show off its bold markings – basically acting as the last warning before it sprays its notorious musk . farm malodorous goo is an expensive physiological undertaking , so the skunks will hold out if they can .
