It goes to show that a little bit of knowledge can go a long way!
As a result of our recent feral animal control workshop in Wyalkatchem, participants learned how to recognise the signs of the Wild Calici Virus in action. This is predominantly the increasing presence of dead rabbits.
One of the participants (a farmer from Cowcowing) noticed a few dead rabbits in one part of his farm. After recalling the advice given at our workshop he relocated the dead rabbits from that area to another part of the farm where the pest population was extremely high. In less than 24 hours he started to see a reduction in his property’s rabbit population. Since then, the number of Calici-affected rabbits has significantly increased.
For this particular farmer, the high rabbit numbers were having a significant and negative impact on his crops. He is now hoping that the combination of the Wild Calici Virus combined with planned summer baiting will mean a less impacted crop in 2022.
We’ve also heard similar feedback from a Gabbin farmer at a recent site visit. The Wild Calici Virus around this region is having a noticeable effect on reducing rabbit populations.
This Wheatbelt NRM project is supported through funding from the State Natural Resource Management Program.