Ecological reasons for not introducing myxomatosis

Authors: Flux JEC
Publication: New Zealand Veterinary Journal, Volume 34, Issue 4, pp 51-52, Apr 1986
Publisher: Taylor and Francis

Animal type: General, Livestock, Production animal, Ruminant, Sheep, Wildlife
Subject Terms: Animal welfare, Biosecurity, Environment, Legal/regulation, Viral, Pest/pesticides, Disease/defect, Infectious disease
Article class: Correspondence

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Abstract: Ecologists generally favour biological control, compared with other methods, because it tends to be more specific and cause less environmental damage. Hence it may seem surprising that ecologists in New Zealand do not favour the introduction of myxomatosis into New Zealand for rabbit control. One reason is that the grassland to which rabbits are almost completely restricted is a very poor habitat for native fauna, and few if any non-target species appear to be threatened despite the widespread application of 1080 poison. The main reason, however, is the possibility that we could lose all control of rabbits throughout the country. The first rabbits introduced from the 1830s were domestic stock which did not spread. Then wild rabbits were brought in, and from the 1860s to 1880s spread rapidly to cover much of New Zealand in a series of waves that left populations in such unlikely places as mountain tops in Fiordland. Numbers declined a little, but remained high until a combination of aerial poisoning and improved farm management drastically reduced them in the 1950s. In 1960 one could drive from Auckland to Wellington without seeing a rabbit. Few New Zealanders appreciate how successful rabbit control has been over the past 20 years…

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