Now is the perfect time to get on to rabbit control and predator management, before it’s too late. Join Josh Rosser (SA Rabbit Control Coordinator) to discuss fox and rabbit control in a special webinar, Wed, Feb. 5th. For more information, see the Sheep Connect website.
Rabbits are as relevant to modern problems like climate change and bushfire recovery, as they are to traditional challenges of vegetation loss, erosion and ecological disruption. In areas recovering from drought or bushfire, now is the time to act. According to a PestSmart article, examination of the damage caused by wild rabbits and other feral […]
Rabbit-Free Australia is now offering a special $20 joining fee for new members. Membership of RFA is one way people can help science stay ahead of rabbits and limit the risk that invasive rabbits will impair the recovery of landscapes following drought and bushfire. For more information see the Media Release or email the Foundation […]
Something is going to die. It will be invasive species or it will be indigenous species. Inaction is a choice for invasives to survive to the detriment of indigenous species. That is the gist of a reflection on New Zealand’s Predator Free 2050 goal, published in New Zealand Geographic. ‘If we leave predators to it, […]
The Victorian Rabbit Action Network (VRAN) has been internationally acclaimed as a successful rabbit management program. Two recent social science papers describe their approach and some of the theory behind it. Key points: The Victorian Rabbit Action Network: Moved away from a top-down, regulatory (roles-based) approach. Defined rabbit management as a ‘wicked problem’ needing a […]
At a recent meeting the RFA Committee resolved to consider forming two sub-committees in the new year: one focused on research and one on communications, the two most important facets of the Foundation’s work. Although yet to be finalised, their roles are likely to include: Research: Oversee an annual call for projects, liaise with the […]
The Australian Wildlife Conservancy continues to protect Bilby habitat and promote the recovery of wild populations of Bilbies, through their efforts in conjunction with partners such as Queensland’s Parks and Forests. To learn more about the AWC program and Greater Bilbies in general, see the AWC Wildlife Matters article on ‘Australia’s ecosystem engineer: the Greater […]
Highlighting the devastation due to invasive species and the imperative of investment in their control remains as relevant as ever according to several recent articles – especially given the impact of alien species on native species, ecosystem services, human health, and food production. A study published in ‘Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment’ found that […]
A tiny Alaskan island faces a threat as deadly as an oil spill – rats. However, ‘biological spills’ can be much worse than oil spills, because they don’t necessarily diminish over time. Biological pollution can adapt, self-propagate and spread, says Professor Anthony Ricciardi from McGill University, Montreal. Interesting to think of invasive species, like wild […]
The national Bilby Recovery Plan is under review, and new research may help re-introductions in southern Australia. The Bilby was adopted as a mascot by RFA to highlight the impact of rabbits on native wildlife and vegetation. According to the draft Recovery Plan for the Greater Bilby; ‘Bilby distribution is associated with an absence or […]