Rabbits can have a devastating impact on our natural environment. They eat native plants and can destroy root systems when burrowing. They also compete with native animals for shelter and food, and they can cause erosion by digging extensive warrens.

Pet rabbits can also become a threat if they escape from domestic back yards. Please ensure pet rabbits are kept in a safe enclosure and do not dump unwanted pets in our local reserves.

Pest animal control is the responsibility of the landowner and Council controls rabbits focussing on its most environmental sensitive reserves.

What can you do?

Using a range of methods and coordinating with your neighbours to control rabbits over the summer season produces great results and restricts rapid recovery of the rabbit population in autumn.

Want to actively control feral rabbits on your property? The Hills and Fleurieu Landscape South Australia’s bait distribution days offer rabbit bait at discount prices and will help you undertake a coordinated baiting program at the optimal time, when conditions are dry, and feed is scarce.

The Landscape Board provides the following advice to manage feral rabbits:

• Exclude rabbits from revegetation areas and gardens using suitable guards and fencing
• Bait with pindone-treated carrots in summer. These can be sourced from us through our office or at one of our distribution days in February and March.
• Bait with pindone-treated oats – these can be purchased from some hardware stores and ag stores
• Bait with RHDV K5 treated carrots sourced from one of our distribution days in February and March.
• Destroy or collapse warrens and remove shelter, clean up piles of green waste, prunings and branches, and deal with those piles of pallets.
• Talk to your neighbours and get them involved to achieve wider rabbit control in your area.

Controlling rabbits in an urban setting can be difficult as the range of options available is limited. The aim should be to remove the rabbits from the environment, and also to modify their environment so that it is less attractive to rabbits in the future.

The first step is to identify the location of any warrens or above ground cover such as plant beds or woodheaps etc. that provide rabbits some refuge. Rabbits are territorial and generally don’t travel more than 200 metres from these sites, with most of their feeding done within 25 to 50 metres. Look for signs of where rabbits have been active, such as burrows, fresh scratches in the soil, scattered or piled dung and damage to vegetation.

Locate the refuge being used and make an estimate of the total area that the rabbits move within. This area is where your control program will need to concentrate. Rabbits do not respect property boundaries so it may be necessary to take joint action with your neighbours.

For more information on how to manage rabbits on rural or urban properties, visit the Hills and Fleurieu Landscape South Australia.