European Rabbit

This feral and introduced rabbit does enormous damage by the amount of plant material it eats. They breed rapidly having between 11-25 young each year, compared to a Potoroo for example that has 2 young per year.

I wonder how long we would put up with them in our gardens eating our flower beds or vegy's?

Found throughout Western Australia except for the Kimberley region.

Rabbits are placental mammals.

The rabbit photographed here is bigger than the more common feral rabbit and is probably the Brown Hare.

Photographed at Bibra Lake in Perth

Brown Hare Lepus capensis

© Museum Victoria Australia 2005

Brown Hare Lepus capensis

© Museum Victoria Australia 2005

European Rabbit

Whole skull measured 78mm in length x 40mm in total width.

European Rabbit

Pelvis measured 75mm long x 50mm wide

Upper jaw

The upper jaw has a total of 4 incisors, no canines, 6 premolars and 6 molars.

Here are the second set of incisors behind the first pair, they are smaller in size.

Lower jaw

The lower jaw has a total of 2 incisors, no canines, 4 premolars and 6 molars.

Lower jaw teeth are used for grinding plant material.

Bunny Poo/scats

Bunnies leave their scats where they dig and feed on slightly raised mounds this also acts as a territory marker to other rabbits.

Tracks

I have found it hard to correctly identify rabbit tracks even though you come across rabbits so often. Their tracks vary depending if they are grazing as their hind foot will leave an imprint, if they are hopping the tracks will be rounder and shorter.

They live in an underground warren that is up to half a metre deep, where the young are cared for in nests lined with fur. Many burrows make up the warren.

I know this is a rabbits burrow as there were several rabbits leaping across the road at night and I saw one dive down it. I was in the wheatbelt near Dryandra. What you are seeing when you run your cursor over the picture is inside of the burrow.

The diggings of these rabbits look similar to the diggings of bandicoots and sometimes it is impossible to tell the difference. But the rabbit hole is more round and less pointy like a bandicoots hole.

Rabbits will scatter during the day when you walk close-by to where they are resting. At a quick glance you may think it was a woylie but when the rabbit hops away you will get a flash of white tail.

What do they eat?

The rabbits eat the new shoots also making it hard for new plants to survive and to replace old plants and so the soil becomes eroded. And due to there being so many rabbits the amount of vegetation they eat is huge.

Rabbits in turn are apart of the food chain themselves being hunted by foxes and feral cats. One feral problem is feeding another feral problem.