-This mode is similar in spirit to `--preserve-merges`, but in contrast to
-that option works well in interactive rebases: commits can be reordered,
-inserted and dropped at will.
+By default, or when `no-rebase-cousins` was specified, commits which do not
+have `<upstream>` as direct ancestor will keep their original branch point,
+i.e. commits that would be excluded by gitlink:git-log[1]'s
+`--ancestry-path` option will keep their original ancestry by default. If
+the `rebase-cousins` mode is turned on, such commits are instead rebased
+onto `<upstream>` (or `<onto>`, if specified).
++
+The `--rebase-merges` mode is similar in spirit to `--preserve-merges`, but
+in contrast to that option works well in interactive rebases: commits can be
+reordered, inserted and dropped at will.