Victoria’s Mallee Parks are sprouting back to life after the control of rabbits and other feral animals, thanks to a 20 year program of control and regeneration. Young pine, buloke and belah trees now grow healthy, where seedlings previously failed to survive. The parks are once more a fully functioning ecosystem, providing habitat and healthy […]
A NZ court has ruled in favour of using 1080 for pest control, over-ruling opposition on animal welfare grounds. The debate is informative to all with an interest in conservation and pest control – including rabbit control, which has long included 1080 in the measures needed for success. For more information, see Science beats superstition […]
The Victorian Rabbit Action Network is running a training program to help people develop local rabbit control groups, or ‘learning networks’. Participants in the 2.5 day course can apply for a $1,000 grant to support local rabbit control projects. For more information see Leadership in Rabbit Control Course.
Macquarie Island’s rebirth continues following the removal of rabbits, rodents and cats. Described as one of the most remarkable stories of conservation in Australia (if not the world), the vegetation on the island is now ‘just going nuts’ and bird life is also recovering, with ‘beaches littered with wildlife’. For more information, see the ABC […]
Ecological modellers have shown how reducing wild rabbit numbers helps maintain small native mammals. Benefits for small mammals occur when 30-40% of rabbits are removed through a mix of biological and physical controls. Higher rates of rabbit removal can lead to a decline in small mammals in the short term, but with subsequent long term […]
The Martu people of the western deserts are involved in developing a bilby monitoring program, combining traditional knowledge and scientific techniques. Robust monitoring is critical to the evaluation of different management strategies, such as burning practices and the control of cats, foxes and rabbits. For more information on the project, see the Threatened Species Recovery […]
The use of poisoned oats to control wild rabbits has decreased in South Australia, following the introduction of RHDV. After RHDV spread through SA in the late 1990s rabbit numbers were reduced so much that the average demand for poison decreased by about 60-70%, and a similar picture has emerged following the arrival of RHDV2. […]
The RHDV1 K5 virus is beginning to take hold in the Otago region of New Zealand. Landholders are urged to take advantage and follow-up with secondary controls. For more information, see the article in The Country, NZ Herald. Photo: Otago Daily Times
Rabbits and foxes are ‘criminals of the animal world’ due to their impact on native plants and animals, according to park authorities in the Australian Capital Territory. Parks and Conservation (ACT) spend over $150,000 a year on rabbit control and are hopeful that RHDV-K5 will be active this autumn and winter. For more information, see […]
The K5 strain of RHDV1 reduced wild rabbit numbers by 80% in the Lincoln National Park on SA’s Eyre Peninsula. For more information, see the article in the Port Lincoln Times. Photo from: Natural Resources EP