Plan

In this section: Plan

Introduction

Getting busy with rabbit control may be a first response to rabbit problems, but time spent planning will ensure greater likelihood of success (especially in the long term), more cost-effective outcomes, and better alignment with property management overall. Planning is about specifying the problem to be fixed (e.g. poor regeneration or pasture growth), understanding the web of interacting contributing factors, and determining how those factors will be managed to generate a desired outcome.

Key questions are:

What is the scope of the plan?

Scope the plan.

 

  • Are any other animals (pests, native fauna or livestock) or weeds associated with your target pest, e.g. due to competition for feed or habitat, predator – prey relationships, or weeds providing harbour or being spread by the pest?
  • Could the control of your target pest have adverse effects?
  • Will controlling your target pest help, or be helped by, the control of other pests or weeds?
  • Is your target pest likely to re-invade from adjacent properties if not controlled there?
  • Are there other people, groups or agencies dealing with the same problems who may have advice or experiences to share?

How do I develop clear objectives?

Develop a plan with clear objectives.

 

  • What outcome do you want to achieve?
  • Are there different control strategies that may suit different circumstances, complement each other, or fit best with other aspects of property management?

Scope the plan

Integrated management

Rabbits are part of a web of interactions across landscapes. The ‘benefits of rabbit control’ diagram records many of them and is a useful thought-starter to consider which interactions will be most important to individual properties. It will help to see relationships that need to be managed regarding:

  • Other pests (e.g. any predator/prey associations with feral cats or foxes, or grazers like feral goats).
  • Weeds (e.g. those providing harbour or being spread by rabbits).
  • Priorities for remediation (e.g. protecting seedlings, crops or rare plants from rabbits).

As detailed in Manage, the best results from rabbit control come when a number of different techniques are integrated into a cohesive plan that often includes biological, physical and chemical control. It is often necessary to also work with neighbours for lasting results, especially if rabbits move between adjacent properties.

For more information:

How rabbits sustain feral cats

Rabbits can be an important part of the diet for foxes and feral cats. The more rabbits there are, the more feral predators there are.

Controlling rabbits can reduce feral cat and fox populations, setting the scene for a targeted cat or fox control program (which would also reduce the risk of ‘prey-switching’ as their food sources diminish).

For more information on how rabbits help sustain feral predators and why conducting feral cat control alongside rabbit control is often beneficial, see About Rabbits / Environmental harm / Promoting predators.

Why plans should involve neighbours

There can be movement of rabbits between warrens and rabbits from a warren on one property may easily graze on neighbouring lands. Unless rabbits are confined to an individual property, plans for rabbit control should involve all the properties on which the rabbits breed and/or feed, regardless of ownership or tenure – otherwise they will re-invade.Rabbit control plans must include the actions that will be taken on an individual property and ideally will be developed in conjunction with neighbours, especially if rabbits move between properties.

Gaining insights from others

Talking with neighbours or others in the community with experience in rabbit control can help determine which control options and approaches will be most suited to your situation. While locals will have experience with similar landscapes, there might also be useful ideas from sources far afield.

eginning with local experts and networks is a good start (e.g. regional NRM bodies, state and/or local government agencies, private contractors, and groups like Landcare). On-line forums can serve as an introduction to a wider network, e.g. Rabbit-Free Forum or, in Victoria, Access a VRAN Mentor.

 

Develop a plan

Outcomes – Purpose & Approach

The best way to start planning a control program is to specify the problem.  It facilitates better analysis of the root cause and clarifies what differences (or outcomes) would occur if the problem was removed. Being clear on these elements gives focus and strategy to the plan.

The following problem analysis charts (vineyard and conservation examples) illustrate how problem analysis feeds into planning and helps define an outcome to focus upon.

Control options

Comprehensive rabbit control can include various forms of culling to reduce their numbers, warren destruction or harbour removal to expose rabbits to more risks and retard breeding, and fencing to keep them out of priority areas. Each has to be considered in light of the local environment (physical and social), the required outcome, the cost-benefit, and alignment with existing property management and landuse.

A mix of control techniques is usually required for rabbit control and getting the sequence and timing right generates additional benefit. Ideally, control occurs in three phases:

  • Knockdown – initial control to reduce rabbits to manageable levels, e.g. biological control, poisoning or taking advantage of drought-induced decimation.
  • Knockout – extensive, often more targeted, control to reduce numbers and inhibiting breeding or reinfestation, e.g. warren destruction and harbour removal.
  • Mop-up – locating and cleaning up remnant rabbits and warrens, e.g. fumigation or shooting.

In some regions private providers offer help in planning and implementing pest control programs.

Timing & Sequencing

The timing of various control operations needs to be optimal in terms of rabbit control, e.g. there is little value in laying baits when more palatable green feed is abundant.

Timing also needs to fit with other aspects of property management. Drawing up an annual calendar of activities helps in both regards and enables rabbit control to become an integral part of annual property management operations, not an intermittent add-on.

For examples of calendars used to plan and synchronise control programs see:

Bellarine Landcare Group, Vic.
 

 

Willandra Lakes World Heritage property, NSW Western LLS
 

 

Qld, Hunter et.al (2008)

 

Using calicivirus.

If calicivirus is already present, there is little to be gained by RHDV-K5 releases at that time and, as a ‘rule of thumb’, RHDV-K5 should not be released if young rabbits or green grass are present – it can be counter-productive. See the ‘RHDV-K5 Rule of thumb explanation’ for more detail.

RabbitScan offers an easy to use analysis service to determine if calicivirus is present, with more information available in Rabbit Disease Tissue Testing.

Calicivirus also leaves tell-tale external and internal signs, offering another way to determine if RHDV is present. See the RHDV Identification Fact Sheet for more information.
RHDV-K5: Rule of thumb explained

RHDV bio-controls should not be released following major rainfall or if green grass is present, because protein rich green grass stimulates breeding and rabbits can develop life-long immunity to RHDV if infected when young. Infecting young rabbits with RHDV could lead to greater immunity to the virus in rabbit populations, reducing its effectiveness over time.

In much of Australia young rabbits can be expected to be present during July-December, hence the release of RHDV should only occur in drier months between January and June, if it is not present already.

Monitoring & Evaluation

Rabbit control plans should include detail on what will be monitored and how it will be done. Building on survey data from the Analyse phase, it should consider the desired outcomes (how to measure them and how to specify a target level of achievement), contributing factors (e.g. rabbit distribution and abundance), and the degree to which the plan is being implemented as specified.

The following monitoring and evaluation charts demonstrate how a monitoring plan could be developed for a rabbit control program in a vineyard and conservation area, carrying on from the examples under Develop a plan / Outcomes.

Photographs are a great aid to monitoring. Photo-points (photos of the same spot, taken over time from the same position) provide a visual record of changes that occur. Other photos of rabbits, rabbit damage, the location and extent of warrens, and of control operations record what has occurred and why. For more information see Assess / Rabbit distribution & abundance and Manage / Monitoring tools.

Useful Resources

References & Weblinks

pestSMART website

Case studies of effective rabbit control:

Downloads

Comprehensive guides

  • ‘Glovebox Guide for managing rabbits.’ (2020) Brown A, Cox T & Wishart JH. Centre for Invasive Species Solutions.
  • ‘Managing Vertebrate Pests: Rabbits.’ (1995) Williams K, Parer I, Coman B, Burley J & Braysher M. Bureau of Resource Sciences & CSIRO Division of Wildlife & Ecology. ResearchGate download
  • ‘Rabbit Control. A guide for land managers’. (2008) Hunter C et.al. Dept of Primary Industries & Fisheries, Qld.

Planning guides & resources

Examples of Rabbit Control Plans