Invasive Rabbit Control Victoria

The European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) is indeed a highly detrimental invasive species in Australia, causing significant economic and environmental damage. As of recent estimates, their impact on Australian agriculture alone is well above $200 million per year in lost production. Some reports even cite figures as high as $239 million annually.

These figures, as stated, are often considered conservative, meaning the true cost is likely even higher when all direct and indirect impacts are fully accounted for.

Methods of Control

Ground shooting with PCP Air-Rifles Thermal / Night vision
Warren GPS Mapping, Smoking, Ripping

Ground shooting with Rimfire Rifles Thermal / Night vision

European Rabbit

European Hare

Economic & Enviromental impacts

Economic impacts

Lost Agricultural Production is the most direct and quantifiable cost. Rabbits compete with livestock for pasture, consume crops, and damage horticultural and viticultural enterprises.
Seven rabbits are often equated to one dry sheep equivalent (DSE) in terms of feed consumption. This directly reduces the carrying capacity of land for sheep and cattle, leading to lower productivity in wool, lamb, and beef industries.
Rabbits graze on various crops, from grains like canola and lupins to high-value vegetables and wine grapes, significantly reducing yields and requiring increased costs for protective control measures.

Enviromental impacts

Rabbits undermine and damage infrastructure through their burrowing activities. This includes roads, railways, fences, farm buildings, and even peri-urban properties.
Rabbits directly compete with native herbivores (like kangaroos, wallabies, bandicoots, bettongs, bilbies, and quolls) for food, water, and shelter. This competition is particularly severe during droughts or after fires when resources are scarce, pushing vulnerable native species towards decline and even extinction. Over 70 listed fauna species are adversely affected by rabbit grazing.
Intensive grazing by rabbits removes ground cover, leaving the soil exposed. The exposed soil becomes highly susceptible to wind and water erosion, leading to loss of topsoil, reduced soil fertility, and land degradation. Their extensive burrowing also directly disturbs the soil.
In arid and semi-arid regions, the combined effects of overgrazing and erosion can contribute to desertification, transforming productive landscapes into barren ones.

European Hare

Economic impacts

In terms of agricultural damage European hares are opportunistic feeders and primarily graze on grasses. However, they also consume various crops, including vegetables, lucerne, and cereals. This can lead to significant economic losses for landowners, particularly in horticulture and forestry.
In recent years, the European hare has generally been classed as a minor pest in Australia. This contrasts sharply with the European rabbit, which causes hundreds of millions of dollars in losses annually.
The economic losses due to hares tend to be more localized and episodic, rather than widespread and consistent across the continent. They can cause significant damage in specific areas or to particular types of agriculture.

Enviromental impacts

Hares are herbivores that primarily graze on grasses, but they also browse on a variety of other plants, including herbs, shrubs, and the bark of young trees.
A key environmental impact is their tendency to gnaw the bark of young trees and shrubs, which can effectively ringbark and kill the plants. This is particularly problematic in natural revegetation sites, bushland regeneration projects, and areas aiming to restore native plant communities.
Hares compete with native grazing animals (such as wallabies and kangaroos, though less intensely than rabbits) for food resources, particularly in grasslands and open woodlands. This competition can become more pronounced during periods of drought when food is scarce
While hares do not burrow extensively like rabbits, their grazing can contribute to changes in vegetation structure and composition in affected areas.