A recent analysis shows that wild rabbits in Australia developed resistance to myxomavirus in a stepped manner, with the second step likely triggered by the introduction of European rabbit fleas. It poses the question of whether further changes in resistance occurred following the advent of RHDV and RHDV2, but no such studies have been undertaken […]
An entertaining Blog by ecologist John Read reveals the dedication of researchers, sheds light on how rabbits sustain feral cats and foxes resulting in hyper-predation of native fauna, and shows how tricky it can be to understand why species are where they are. Follow the link to read John’s Blog, ‘Sharing the secret. Better than […]
A future climate with more heatwaves could leave rabbits more exposed to heat stress and predators – that’s one of the insights from a recent study at Arid Recovery’s wildlife reserve in South Australia. Monitoring collars were fitted to rabbits and bilbies in the reserve to record their location and activity, and the temperature and […]
Want to help promote research into better rabbit management and stay up to date with news of the latest developments in rabbit control? Then now is the time to Join Us as a Member at Rabbit-Free Australia. As a member, you will receive regular newsletters with the latest rabbit and rabbit-research related news. You’ll also […]
Effective planning is one of the keys to effective rabbit control – and now is a great time to start planning a summer control program. A case study from Riverina Local Land Services (NSW) shows the benefit of sound planning at a district scale (mapping warrens and arranging the most suitable machinery to use in […]
Grazing by rabbits, even at post-calici densities, can still inhibit the recruitment of palatable plant species and result in more weeds like horehound; that is one of the findings of a recent project from PhD candidate Neil Ross (UNSW). Neil studied 15 long-term grazing exclosures in the NSW and SA rangelands to understand the impact […]
The continuing ecological recovery of Macquarie Island demonstrates the effectiveness of starting at the bottom of the food web to generate landscape health. An initial focus on feral cats triggered a boom in rabbit and rat populations. Eliminating rabbits, rats and mice paved the way for predator removal and triggered a revival in vegetative habitat […]
The recent Rabbit R&D Update webinar was a source of great information on rabbits, bio-controls and the impact of rabbits on the environment, including sustaining feral predators. Materials from the webinar are now available: Presentations as PDFs: Brian Cooke, European rabbit fleas. Katherine Moseby, Rabbits & feral cats. Andreas Glanznig, Nationally coordinated rabbit biocontrol R&D. […]
Monitored since an introduction of calicvirus in 1996, a rabbit colony on Turretfield Research Centre (South Australia) is the longest serving, continually monitored rabbit research site in the world. Data from the site have helped deliver a better understanding of rabbit biology, the transmission and effect of bio-controls (RHDV, RHDV2 and myxomatosis), and rabbit genetics, […]
The ‘Bilbies not Bunnies’ slogan is a reminder of the harm rabbits cause and the need to control them if native plants and animals are to flourish. European wild rabbits changed Australian landscapes, removing vegetation and abetting soil erosion which was so widespread in the early 1900s that State governments introduced Soil Conservation legislation to […]