Pest report
Introduction
Hi i’m deegan and i’m here to talk to you about wild rabbits how they got here, their effects on the land and the best way to get rid of them and problems with them. Rabbits were introduced to New Zealand around the 1830s and have long created problems for farmers. Wild rabbits compete with livestock for pasture and also cause land damage from burrowing.
The impact wild rabbits have on New Zealand is massive
It's previously been estimated that rabbits cost New Zealand over $50 million in lost production, plus a further $25 million in direct pest control a year. Wild rabbits: compete with livestock for pasture by eating the best grass. cause extensive land damage from burrowing, making farming land useless.
this is a confusing food web but let me make it more simple the hawks eat all the other animals the stoat and ferret eat the weka and the rabbit and the rabbit eats the grass lilies and kowhai flower and i don’t know what the weka eats but i’m guessing it’s the grass or something.
What is currently being done
Fumigation. Fumigation can be very effective for controlling rabbits where other methods are unsuitable. Phosphine and the soon-to-be-released carbon monoxide pressure fumigator may be used as rabbit fumigants. Both chemicals are toxic to humans, particularly in enclosed spaces.
What can be done to eradicate wild rabbits from New Zealand
What i think can be done to help with rabbit control is to just get ya dogs and go for a walk or get your guns or what ever you have and go find rabbits but poison is also a choice but it doesn't kill just rabbits but everything else but anyways here are two poison types
Chronic poisons These poisons are usually slow acting and have a cumulative effect; rabbits must consume several applications of treated baits over a number of days to acquire a lethal dose. Chronic poisons are relatively safe to handle and a Controlled Substance license (CSL) is not usually required to purchase or use. The most commonly used rabbit poison of this type in the Bay of Plenty is Pindone, though a CSL is not required to purchase or use Pindone in a bait station, a CSL is required if using bait-mats or hand broadcasting pindone onto the ground.
Acute poisons These poisons are fast acting and will kill rabbits after a single dose. Acute poisons are potentially hazardous and are controlled pesticides i.e. a CSL is required to purchase and use such poisons. Due to the requirement of a CSL, it is imperative that a qualified and experienced operator be engaged to carry out the work, to ensure it is completed safely and effectively.
Predator Free 2050 is a key programme of work towards restoring New Zealand’s biodiversity Predator Free 2050 is not an isolated programme – it is one of many programmes of work that can reverse the decline in our biodiversity if we actively work together. Collectively, these policies and programmes will contribute to the outcomes of the updated New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy (currently in preparation), which is the overarching strategy for a broad range of biodiversity-related policies and programmes. Predator Free 2050 is a significant programme of work that will help achieve Biodiversity Strategy outcomes (fig. 1). Work towards a Predator Free New Zealand also contributes to New Zealand’s wider biosecurity effort to protect biodiversity and other values from biosecurity risks.
Most effective way to kill rabbits in my opinion
This graph shows a comparison between four categories of ways to kill wild rabbits. The one with the lowest number is the best one in my opinion, which is using dogs to chase them down and tear them to shreds. The two second choices are trapping and poisoning witch i find effective but i don't like them much but anyways on to the third shooting i like it a lot but it would cost to much
This shows how many pests were killed in a specific year and month. I just don’t know what pests.
As you can see around 900 were killed in 2020 and around mar apr may and june
Conclusion:
Why do we have to eradicate wild rabbits
Rabbits can cause damage by: overgrazing native and sown pastures, leading to loss of plant biodiversity and reduced crop yields. competing with native animals and domestic livestock for food and shelter, increasing grazing pressure and lowering the land's carrying capacity.