A European Rabbit on an Australian farm

In Australia, rabbits are the most serious mammalian pests, an invasive species whose destruction of habitats is responsible for the extinction or major decline of many native animals such as the Western Quoll. Annually, European Rabbits cause millions of dollars of damage to crops. Young wild rabbit photographed in the Midwestern U.S. Copyright 1995 Steven J. Dunlop, Nerstrand, MN, USA. Released under the GFDL; all other rights reserved. ... Young wild rabbit photographed in the Midwestern U.S. Copyright 1995 Steven J. Dunlop, Nerstrand, MN, USA. Released under the GFDL; all other rights reserved. ... For other uses, see Rabbit (disambiguation). ... Subclasses & Infraclasses Subclass †Allotheria* Subclass Prototheria Subclass Theria Infraclass †Trituberculata Infraclass Metatheria Infraclass Eutheria For the folk-rock band see The Mammals. ... Carpet beetle larvae damaging a specimen of Sceliphron destillatorius in an entomological collection A pest is an organism which has characteristics that are regarded as injurious or unwanted. ... Lantana invasion of abandoned citrus plantation; Moshav Sdey Hemed, Israel The term invasive species refers to a subset of introduced species or non-indigenous species that are rapidly expanding outside of their native range. ... Binomial name Dasyurus geoffroii Gould, 1841 Western Quoll range The Western Quoll (Dasyurus geoffroii), also known as the Chuditch or Western Native Cat is an endangered Australian dasyuromorph, whose distribution is now confined to south western Western Australia. ... Binomial name (Linnaeus, 1758) Range map The European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) is a species of rabbit native to southern Europe. ... Look up crop in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Effects on Australia's ecology

An erosion gully in South Australia caused by rabbits.

The effect of rabbits on the ecology of Australia has been devastating. One eighth of all mammalian species in Australia are now extinct^{[citation needed]} (rabbits are the most significant known factor), and the loss of plant species is unknown even at this time. Rabbits often kill young trees in orchards, forests and on properties by ringbarking them.^[1] my own picture File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... my own picture File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

Rabbits are also responsible for serious erosion problems as they eat native plants which leave the topsoil exposed and vulnerable to sheet, gully and wind erosion. The removal of this topsoil is devastating to the land as it takes many hundreds of years to regenerate. Some of this erosion may also be the result of settlers clearing much of Australia's land for farming (and use of unsuitable agricultural techniques) and to make room for housing. For morphological image processing operations, see Erosion (morphology). ...

Introduction of rabbits to Australia

Rabbits were first introduced to Australia by the First Fleet in 1788, but the current infestation appears to have originated with the release of 24 wild rabbits by Thomas Austin on his property, Barwon Park (near Winchelsea, Victoria), in October 1859 for hunting purposes. While living in England, Austin had been an avid hunter, regularly dedicating his weekends to rabbit shooting. Upon arriving in Australia, which had no native rabbit population, Austin asked his nephew in England to send him 24 grey rabbits, five hares, 72 partridges and some sparrows so that he could continue his hobby in Australia by creating a local population of the species. Many other farms released their rabbits into the wild after Austin. At the time he had stated: The First Fleet is the name given to the 11 ships which sailed from Great Britain on May 13, 1787 to establish the first European colony in New South Wales. ... 1788 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Thomas Austin was an Australian farmowner and hunting enthusiast who is generally credited with the introduction of rabbits into Australia in 1859. ... Winchelsea is a town in Victoria, Australia. ... Year 1859 (MDCCCLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... This article is about the hunting of prey by human society. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ...

"The introduction of a few rabbits could do little harm and might provide a touch of home, in addition to a spot of hunting."^[2]

Rabbits are extremely prolific creatures, and spread rapidly across the southern parts of the country. Australia had ideal conditions for a rabbit population explosion. With mild winters, rabbits were able to breed the entire year. With widespread farming, areas that may have been desert, scrub, or woodlands were instead turned into vast areas with low vegetations, creating ideal habitat for rabbits. Humans were directly responsible for the initial release of the rabbits, and indirectly responsible for modifying the Australian landscape for ideal rabbit survival.

Within ten years of the 1859 introduction, the original 24 rabbits had multiplied so much that two million could be shot or trapped annually without having any noticeable effect on the population. Year 1859 (MDCCCLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ...

It was the fastest spread ever recorded of any mammal anywhere in the world. Today rabbits are entrenched in the southern and central areas of the country, with scattered populations in the northern deserts.

The rabbit-proof fence was built in Western Australia, between Cape Keraudren and Esperance to try to control the rabbit population. European rabbits can both jump very high and burrow underground. Even assuming a perfectly intact fence stretching for hundreds of miles, and assuming that ranchers or farmers do not leave gates open for livestock or machinery, it was unlikely to be a success. Photo of the Rabbit proof fence, taken in 1927 Photo of the Rabbit proof fence, taken in 2005 For the movie, see Rabbit-Proof Fence (film) The State Barrier Fence of Western Australia, formerly known as the No. ... Binomial name Oryctolagus cuniculus (Linnaeus, 1758) The European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) is a species of rabbit native to southern Europe. ...

A load of rabbit skins, Northern Tablelands, New South Wales

The Northern Tablelands is a plateau and a region of the Great Dividing Range in northern New South Wales, Australia. ...

Conventional control measures

Shooting rabbits is one of the most common control methods.

Destroying warrens through ripping, ploughing, blasting, and fumigating is also widely used especially on large farms (known as 'stations'). The sandy soil in many parts of Australia makes ripping and ploughing a viable method of control, and both tractors and bulldozers are used for this operation.

Poisoning is also often used. Poisoning is probably the most widely-used of the conventional techniques, as it requires the least effort. The disadvantage is that the rabbit cannot be used as food for either humans or pets afterward.

Another technique used occasionally is hunting using ferrets, where ferrets are deployed to chase the rabbits out to be shot or into nets set over the burrows. This is more a hunting activity than a serious control method. This article is about the mammal. ...

Although the rabbit is a notorious pest it proved helpful to many people during the depression and during the war. Trapping rabbits helped farmers and stationhands by providing something to eat, extra income and in many cases helped pay off farming debts. Rabbits were fed to working dogs, and boiled to be fed to the rabbiters' poultry. Later frozen rabbit carcases were traded locally and exported. Pelts, too, were used in the fur trade and are still used in the felt-hat industry.^[3]

Historically, trapping was also frequently used; steel-jawed leg-holding traps were banned in most states in the 1980s on animal cruelty grounds, though trapping continues at a lower level using rubber-jawed traps. All of these techniques are limited to working only in settled areas and are quite labour-intensive. The 1980s refers to the years from 1980 to 1989. ...

Biological measures

Releasing rabbit-borne diseases has proven somewhat successful in controlling the population of rabbits in Australia. In 1950, after research carried out by Frank Fenner, Myxomatosis was deliberately released into the rabbit population, causing it to drop from an estimated 600 million to around 100 million. Genetic resistance in the remaining rabbits allowed the population to recover to 200-300 million by 1991. Year 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Dr Frank Fenner (born 1914) is an Australian scientist with a distinguished career in the field of virology. ... A European Rabbit afflicted by Myxomatosis in Shropshire, England. ... Year 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the 1991 Gregorian calendar). ...

To combat this trend, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) scientists released calicivirus (also known as Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease or RHD) in 1996. However, the large number of rabbits killed resulted in starvation among their predators. The success of the virus was found to be higher in drier climates. This was because it appears there is another calicivirus in the colder, wetter areas of Australia, and that this virus was immunising rabbits against the more virulent form. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is the national government body for scientific research in Australia. ... Genera Vesivirus Lagovirus Norovirus Sapovirus The Caliciviridae family are members of Class IV of the Baltimore scheme. ... Year 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar). ...

The Australian Government refuses to legalize a vaccine to protect pet rabbits against Myxomatosis, for fear the rabbit may escape and transmit resistance to the disease^{[citation needed]}. A legal vaccine exists in Australia for RHD. Thousands of pet rabbit owners in Australia suffer losses of their pet rabbits each year.^{[citation needed]} There is no cure for either Myxomatosis or RHD, and many affected pets are euthanised. In Europe, where rabbits are farmed on a large scale, they are protected against myxomatosis and calicivirus with a genetically modified virus.^[4] The virus was developed in Spain, and is beneficial to rabbit farmers. If it were to make its way into wild populations in areas such as Australia, this could create a population boom.

See also

• Thomas Austin
• Rabbit-proof fence
• CSIRO Hut

Thomas Austin was an Australian farmowner and hunting enthusiast who is generally credited with the introduction of rabbits into Australia in 1859. ... Photo of the Rabbit proof fence, taken in 1927 Photo of the Rabbit proof fence, taken in 2005 For the movie, see Rabbit-Proof Fence (film) The State Barrier Fence of Western Australia, formerly known as the No. ... CSIRO Hut is an Australian alpine hut. ...

References

This article or section is missing citations or needs footnotes. Using inline citations helps guard against copyright violations and factual inaccuracies. (August 2007)

• Australian Broadcasting Corporation Landline
• Rabbit Free Australia
• CSIRO
• CSIRO Protection for Pet rabbits

Image File history File links Emblem-important. ...

External links

• Rabbit Information Service - a site opposing the use of rabbit calicivirus in Australia
• Dr Brian Cooke from CSIRO Wildlife and Ecology receiving the 2000 POL Eureka Prize for Environmental Research, for his lifetime commitment to reducing the devastation caused by rabbits on the Australian environment
• Rabbit Free Australia