Well, the presence of a mane encircling a rabbit's head is certainly an incredible sight. So what causes this and what do we know about it?

The mane gene occurred as the result of a genetic mutation during the 1990's in Europe. Other well-known genetic mutations in rabbits are the rex and satin fur types. Since the mane gene is genetic, rabbits that have manes can pass this trait on to their offspring.

I have not yet seen any information in rabbit genetic books discussing the mane gene, so I will use "M" for the mane gene and "m" for no mane gene until someone tells me differently:

M = mane
m = no mane

Remember how genes always come in pairs? This means that all rabbits have two genetic locations (alleles) for the mane gene. Therefore, rabbits can have two mane genes (MM), one mane gene (Mm), or no mane gene (mm). The mane gene is a dominant gene, so rabbits only have to have one mane gene (Mm) to have a physical mane. In fact, if rabbits have two mane genes, the mane is severely exaggerated and there is much more wool on the body, feet, face, and ears.

The following chart illustrates the statistical probabilities of the offspring if you breed rabbits together with and without manes:

This shows that you cannot get maned offspring unless at least one of the parents has at least one mane gene.

Non-maned rabbits can be useful when bred to a double-maned Lionhead as 100% of the offspring will have a single mane gene (which is necessary to be showable as described below). Any other breeding than this will result in at least 50% being non-showable due to lack of the mane gene or a double dose of the mane gene.

Let's look a little closer at the two types of maned rabbits - single-maned Lionheads and double-mane Lionheads.

Single-Maned Lionheads (Mm)

The current proposed ARBA working standard for the Lionhead breed is written for rabbits that have one mane gene (Mm). On these rabbits, there is a ring of wool that encircles the head of the rabbit, falling into a "V" at the back of the rabbit's neck (see the proposed working standard for a better description of the mane). The mane wool is similar to the wool of English Angoras.

Juniors also have wool extending from their body between their lower hindquarters and their flanks. This extra body wool usually falls off by the time they molt into seniors. Unfortunately, the Lionheads that have heavier body wool also tend to have better manes. Ideally we would like to have full manes without any body wool, but we have to work with the genetics we have been given.

The quality, length, and density of the manes are still somewhat variable, but I would expect this to improve and stabilize as the breed is worked on. Most Lionheads have a full mane around their heads, but about 5% only have wisps of longer fur between their ears. Some Lionheads have longer, thinner manes, and some have shorter, denser manes. The ones with the shorter, denser manes tend to keep their manes into adulthood much better than the longer, thinner ones. I have noticed no difference in mane quality between purebred Lionheads and hybrid Lionheads. The characteristics of the mane appear to be highly inheritable.

It can be difficult to determine whether a newborn has a single mane gene or no mane gene. I have noticed that many of them at the age of 1-4 days will have dull skin as opposed to shiny skin behind the ears, along the cheeks and along the lower body sides where the wool will come in later. Some of them will have woollier cheeks by a week old than their non-maned siblings. Otherwise, you have to wait until they are 2-1/2 to 3 weeks old when their manes begin to bloom.

Double-Maned Lionheads (MM)

I have heard of double-maned Lionheads being referred to as "floofballs", "powder puffs", "dust mops", and many other such names. When a Lionhead has two mane genes (MM), the mane is severely exaggerated and much more wool is present all over the body. Similar to the Lionheads with the single mane gene (Mm), the wool on double-maned Lionheads (MM) is like that of English Angoras. I have been tempted to show some of my 3-month old double-maned Lionheads as English Angoras to see how many judges might be able to tell the difference, but I might get into too much trouble if I tried that. If I ever attend a rabbit show on April Fool's Day I might reconsider, though.

Lionheads that have two mane genes (MM) are not showable due to multiple disqualifications, such as wool all over the body, face, ears, and feet.

It is very easy to spot double-maned Lionheads when they are born. They actually look quite bizarre compared to anything most rabbit breeders are used to. When I saw the first one, I started laughing hysterically. They are completely bald on the lower body sides, cheeks, and behind the ears, and stay that way until they are about a week old. These bald areas will eventually turn into longer wool.

By the time they are 3 months old they are completely covered in wool similar to an English Angora. Some have a distinct mane that you can see, and some have so much facial wool that you cannot distinguish the mane. Some will lose most of their extended body wool (particularly in the saddle area) when they molt into their adult coat, but some will keep a great amount of it into adulthood.  Double-maned Lionheads tend to have wonderful, full manes into adulthood unless they have so much facial wool that the mane is indistinguishable.

Please be aware that double-maned Lionheads are very susceptible to wool block, so take precautions against this. One breeder I know recommends giving rabbits a tooth-paste-sized amount of Petromalt (available at rabbit equipment dealers) twice per month.

Additional Notes

The mane gene seems to affect only the undercoat of the rabbit and turn it into longer wool instead of normal fur. It appears to have no or little affect on the guard hairs. This is why the mane appears in the locations it does - where guard hairs are sparse and the undercoat proliferates, such as the cheeks, triangle of the neck, belly, and lower rear sides.

The above information is our current working theory and is supported by many breedings. There has not been enough research into the genetics behind the mane gene to understand if the mane gene is influenced by other rabbit genes. For example, if a rabbit has a single recessive wool gene, is the mane gene influenced by this? Is the mane gene connected in any way with other genes such as being located on the same chromosome? In time and after many more breedings, we will have answers to these questions and will better understand this intriguing genetic mutation.