Editing Rabbit (section)

===Environmental problems===
{{See also|European rabbit#As an introduced species}}
[[File:Rabbit fence Cobar October 1905.jpg|thumb|Impact of rabbit-proof fence, Cobar, New South Wales, 1905]]
Rabbits, particularly the European rabbit,<ref name=":9" /> have been a source of environmental problems when introduced into the wild by humans. As a result of their appetites, and the rate at which they breed, [[feral]] rabbit depredation can be problematic for agriculture. Gassing ([[fumigation]] of warrens),<ref>{{cite web |last1=Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development |last2=Agriculture and Food Division |last3=Pest and Disease Information Service (PaDIS) |title=Rabbit control: fumigation |url=https://www.agric.wa.gov.au/baits-poisons/rabbit-control-fumigation |website=agric.wa.gov.au |publisher=Government of Western Australia |access-date=25 September 2021 |language=en}}</ref> [[Rabbit-proof fence|barriers (fences)]],<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Crawford |first=J S |date=1969 |title=History of the state vermin barrier fences, formerly known as rabbit proof fences |url=https://library.dpird.wa.gov.au/reports/14/ |access-date=3 May 2023 |journal=Research Reports}}</ref> shooting, snaring, and [[Rabbiting#Ferreting|ferreting]]<ref>{{cite journal |last=Cowan |first=D. P. |date=1 December 1984 |title=The use of ferrets (Mustela furo) in the study and management of the European wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) |journal=Journal of Zoology |language=en |volume=204 |issue=4 |pages=570–574 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-7998.1984.tb02391.x |issn=1469-7998}}</ref><ref name=":14">{{cite book |last1=Williams |first1=Kent |title=Managing Vertebrate Pests: Rabbits |last2=Parer |first2=Ian |last3=Coman |first3=Brian |last4=Burley |first4=John |last5=Braysher |first5=Mike |date=1995 |publisher=Australian Govt. Pub. Service |isbn=978-0644296236 |location=Canberra |oclc=153977337}}</ref> have been used to control rabbit populations,<ref name=":14"/> but the most effective measures are diseases such as [[myxomatosis]] and [[Rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus|calicivirus]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=CSIRO |title=Biological control of rabbits |url=https://www.csiro.au/en/research/animals/pests/biological-control-of-rabbits |access-date=2024-10-09 |website=www.csiro.au |language=en}}</ref> In Europe, where domestic rabbits are farmed on a large scale, they can be protected against myxomatosis and calicivirus via vaccination.<ref name="Meredith 2013">{{cite journal |last=Meredith |first=A |date=2013 |title=Viral skin diseases of the rabbit |journal=Veterinary Clinics of North America: Exotic Animal Practice |volume=16 |issue=3 |pages=705–714 |doi=10.1016/j.cvex.2013.05.010 |pmid=24018033}}</ref> [[Rabbits in Australia]] and New Zealand are considered to be such a pest that landowners are legally obliged to control them.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/invasive/ferals/index.html |title=Feral animals in Australia&nbsp;— Invasive species |publisher=Environment.gov.au |date=1 February 2010 |access-date=30 August 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100721222513/http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/invasive/ferals/index.html |archive-date=21 July 2010 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref name="rabbit laws in NZ">{{cite web |url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/rabbits/7 |title=Rabbits&nbsp;— The role of government&nbsp;— Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand |publisher=Teara.govt.nz |date=1 March 2009 |access-date=30 August 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612101254/http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/rabbits/7 |archive-date=12 June 2011 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

Rabbits are known to be able to catch fire and spread wildfires, particularly in Chile, where the European rabbit is an invasive species,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Pablo |first=Camus |last2=Sergio |first2=Castro |last3=Fabián |first3=Jaksic |date=2008 |title=Europen rabbits in Chile: the history of a biological invasion |url=https://socialsciences.scielo.org/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0717-71942008000100001&lng=es&nrm=iso |journal=Historia (Santiago) |volume=4 |issue=SE |issn=0717-7194 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241219015415/http://socialsciences.scielo.org/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0717-71942008000100001&lng=es&nrm=iso |archive-date=2024-12-19}}</ref> but the efficiency and relevance of this mechanism has been doubted by forest experts who contend that a rabbit on fire could move some meters.<ref>{{Cite news |title="Es cierto": Experto confirma que conejos y otros animales en llamas sí pueden propagar incendios |url=https://www.biobiochile.cl/noticias/ciencia-y-tecnologia/ciencia/2023/02/23/es-cierto-experto-confirma-que-conejos-y-otros-animales-en-llamas-si-pueden-propagar-incendios.shtml |last=Jerez |first=Sara |date=2023-02-23 |access-date=2023-02-23 |work=[[Radio Bío-Bío]] |language=Spanish}}</ref><ref name=delmar>{{Cite news |title=Experto forestal: "Los conejos no son un agente significativo de propagación de incendios" |url=https://www.eldesconcierto.cl/bienes-comunes/2023/02/23/experto-forestal-los-conejos-no-son-un-agente-significativo-de-propagacion-de-incendios.html |last=del Mar Parra |first=Maria |date=2023-02-23 |access-date=2023-02-23 |work=El Desconcierto |language=Spanish}}</ref> Knowledge on fire-spreading rabbits is based on anecdotes as there is no known scientific investigation on the subject.<ref name=delmar/>