Small places populated by a majority of cute animals have become quite a tourist hit in Japan, and somewhere near the top of that list is Okunoshima, which has affectionately become known as Rabbit Island. It's garnered a reputation as a bunny paradise, as the adorable critters rule the island and are not shy about hopping up to you and demanding a serving of food and cuddles. Located just 3.4 kilometers (about a 12 minute ferry ride) from Hiroshima, the hundreds of bunnies are helping transition the island out of a somewhat dark past.

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Source: YouTube

Up through World War II, Okunoshima housed a chemical weapons lab for the Japanese army. While that is long gone, in its place is a Poison Gas Museum to promote peace, as well as over 700 rabbits who are free from any other natural predators on the island. While the rabbit-run island is super popular with visitors Japanese and foreign alike, their origin story remains a bit clouded--with some theories tying them back to the lab itself, and others saying the bunnies are completely unrelated.

So to try and clear things up, Great Big Story recently put out this video hoping to explore how the rabbits came to take over Okunoshima.

So while there doesn't seem to be a completely settled upon answer, there is this charming video of the rabbits swarming a food-carrying guest!


By - grape Japan editorial staff.