Editing Rabbits in Australia (section)

==History==
[[File:Rabbit shooting at Barwon Park, Victoria, 1860s.jpg|thumb|right|275px|[[Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha|Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh]], rabbit shooting at Barwon Park, Victoria in the 1860s]]

Rabbits were first introduced to Australia by the [[First Fleet]] in 1788.<ref>{{cite web |date=17 September 2015 |title=Rabbits – fact sheet |url=http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/pestsweeds/RabbitFactsheet.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612123155/http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/pestsweeds/RabbitFactsheet.htm |archive-date=12 June 2018 |access-date=2 December 2015 |website=NSW Office of Environment & Heritage}}</ref> They were bred as food animals, probably in cages. In the first decades, they do not appear to have been numerous, judging from their absence from archaeological collections of early colonial food remains. However, by 1827 in [[Tasmania]], a newspaper article noted "...the common rabbit is becoming so numerous throughout the colony, that they are running about on some large estates by thousands. We understand, that there are no rabbits whatever in the elder colony" i.e., [[New South Wales]] (NSW).<ref>''Colonial Times and Tasmanian Advertiser'' 22 May 1827</ref> This clearly shows a localised rabbit population explosion was underway in Tasmania in the early 19th century. At the same time in NSW, Cunningham noted, "... rabbits are bred around houses, but we have yet no wild ones in enclosures..." He also noted the scrubby, sandy rubble between Sydney and [[Botany Bay]] would be ideal for farming rabbits.<ref>Cunningham P. [1827] ''Two years in New South Wales'', vol. 1, p. 304</ref>

Enclosures appear to mean more extensive rabbit-farming warrens, rather than cages. The first of these, in Sydney at least, was one built by [[Alexander Macleay]] at [[Elizabeth Bay House]], "a preserve or rabbit-warren, surrounded by a substantial stone wall, and well stocked with that choice game."<ref>Sydney Gazette 28 May 1831</ref> In the 1840s, rabbit-keeping became even more common, with examples of the theft of rabbits from ordinary peoples' houses appearing in court records and rabbits entering the diets of ordinary people.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

In 1857–1858, Alexander Buchanan, overseer for [[Frederick Dutton (Australian politician)|F. H. Dutton's]] [[Anlaby Estate]] in the Mid-North of [[South Australia]], released a number of rabbits for hunting sport. Their population remained fairly stable until around 1866, presumed to have been kept in check by native carnivores and were protected by an Act of Parliament, but by 1867 was out of control.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article43013586 |title=House of Assembly |newspaper=[[South Australian Register]] |location=Adelaide |date=1 November 1876 |access-date=28 November 2015 |page=7 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> The [[population explosion]] was ascribed to the disappearance of native predators, but the emergence of a hardier breed by [[natural selection]] has subsequently been attributed to their spread.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

[[File:Rabbit skins.jpg|thumb|left|275px|A load of rabbit skins, [[Northern Tablelands, New South Wales|Northern Tablelands]], New South Wales]]

The current infestation appears to have originated with the release of 24 wild rabbits<ref>{{cite web |title=Rabbit Problems in Australia |url=http://www.animalcontrol.com.au/rabbit.htm |publisher=Animal Control Technologies (Australia) Pty Ltd |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160317003311/http://www.animalcontrol.com.au/rabbit.htm |archive-date=17 March 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> by [[Thomas Austin (pastoralist)|Thomas Austin]] for [[hunting]] purposes in October 1859, on his property, Barwon Park, near [[Winchelsea, Victoria|Winchelsea]], Victoria and by 1866, the Geelong Advertiser reported 50,000 having been killed by hunters.<ref>Berrow's Worcester Journal, Saturday 31 March 1866, p.6</ref> While living in England, Austin had been an avid hunter, regularly dedicating his weekends to rabbit shooting. Upon arriving in Australia, which had no native rabbit population, Austin asked his nephew William Austin in England to send him 12 grey rabbits, five hares, 72 partridges, and some sparrows so he could continue his hobby in Australia by creating a local population of the species. At the time, he had stated, "The introduction of a few rabbits could do little harm and might provide a touch of home, in addition to a spot of hunting".<ref name="agspsrv34.agric.wa.gov.au 2005">{{cite web |title=The State Barrier Fence of Western Australia |website=agspsrv34.agric.wa.gov.au |date=22 July 2005 |url=http://agspsrv34.agric.wa.gov.au/programs/app/barrier/history.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050722133944/http://agspsrv34.agric.wa.gov.au/programs/app/barrier/history.htm |archive-date=22 July 2005 |url-status=dead |access-date=12 April 2023}}</ref> William could not source enough grey rabbits to meet his uncle's order, so he topped it up by buying domestic rabbits. One theory as to why the Barwon Park rabbits adapted so well to Australia is that the hybrid rabbits that resulted from the interbreeding of the two distinct types were much more suited to Australian conditions.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.intown.com.au/feature/geelong-and-the-rabbit-invasion.htm |title=Geelong Rabbit Invasion |website=In Town Geelong |access-date=6 June 2016}}</ref> Many other farms released their rabbits into the wild after Austin.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

The rabbits were extremely prolific and spread rapidly across the southern parts of the country. Australia had ideal conditions for a rabbit population explosion. With mild winters, rabbits were able to breed the entire year. With widespread farming, areas that might otherwise have been scrub or woodlands were, instead, turned into vast areas with low vegetation, creating ideal habitats for rabbits.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

In a classic example of [[unintended consequences]], rabbits had become so prevalent within 10 years of their introduction in 1859 that two million could be shot or trapped annually without having any noticeable effect on the population. It was the fastest spread ever recorded of any mammal anywhere in the world. Today, rabbits are entrenched in the southern and central areas of the country, with scattered populations in the northern deserts.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

Although the rabbit is a notorious pest, it proved useful to many people during the depressions of the 1890s and [[Great Depression in Australia|1930s]] and during wartime. Trapping rabbits helped farmers, [[stockman (Australia)|stockmen]], and [[station (Australian agriculture)|station]]hands by providing food and extra income, and in some cases helped pay off farming debts. Rabbits were fed to [[Working_dog#Working_dogs_in_Australia|working dogs]] and boiled to be fed to poultry. Later, frozen rabbit carcasses were traded locally and exported. Pelts, too, were used in the fur trade and are still used in the [[Akubra|felt-hat industry]].<ref name="ReferenceA"/>