Rabbits

[C3PO_1]

Is it true that owners of land (whatever the size) have a legal responsibility to eradicate or at least mitigate the numbers of rabbits on it? I thought I read about this somewhere.

Also, anyone know the movements of rabbits during the day and night ... ie what time are they likely to come out, and what are their habits during the different times of the year?

They're currently causing chaos with my lawn ... despite my attempts to control them.

[bullbarrel]

Defra says.....

http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-cou...tes/rabbit.htm

[phil384]

Also, anyone know the movements of rabbits during the day and night ... ie what time are they likely to come out, and what are their habits during the different times of the year?

Dawn and dusk are favourite. Won't generally come out in the rain but there are always exceptions.

[C3PO_1]

Thanks -- it's incredible the amount of damage they're doing to the lawns .... the seem to just scrap away the top and dig down a few inches -- spent tuppence -- and try it again somewhere else.

[benp]

I moved to a new house at Christmas. In the space of a couple of weeks the front lawn had been eated to the dirt and the grass would not grow back. I turns out that the nitrogen conventration from the droppings prevent the grass regrowing. (I ended up on a hot day - sweeping the lawn, and removed a 1/4 bucket of droppings - please note this is a small lawn so the quantity is huge).

Lesson learnt is to clean up any droppings you find, especially in the holes they dig as re-seeding will not work (the seeds just lie dormant until the conditions are better).

[some bloke]

A farm near me is absolutely riddled with them. The wealthy and rather portly potato sack shaped genulman farms as a hobby and lurves his rabbits
His reply to my suggestion that he has an obligation to control them was "Ah - but how many is too many"?

According to one of his minions he spends hours watching them through a spotting scope. His wife looked like she was going to vomit at the thought of them being shot - and pointed out that its mostly humans that need to be culled

I politely thanked them and left feeling slightly peeved that I'd handed them my "free pest control" card at the beginning of the conversation

[Bluelungbutter]

Yip landowners have a legal obligation to keep down the rabbit's on their land. This includes the railway as we get rabbit netting from them to put up on our land that boundries with the railway. (little buggers still dig under it though).

The best time of day, as said is dawn and dusk but the best thing to do is try to observe for a while, as i have noticed a change in the fields i shoot from them coming out more at night, to coming out more between the hours of 5 and 7:30am. They seem to change depending on weather conditions too.

DunK

[Parabuteo]

A farm near me is absolutely riddled with them. The wealthy and rather portly potato sack shaped genulman farms as a hobby and lurves his rabbits
His reply to my suggestion that he has an obligation to control them was "Ah - but how many is too many"?

According to one of his minions he spends hours watching them through a spotting scope. His wife looked like she was going to vomit at the thought of them being shot - and pointed out that its mostly humans that need to be culled

I politely thanked them and left feeling slightly peeved that I'd handed them my "free pest control" card at the beginning of the conversation

Simple answer.....One, if it gets onto neighbours land and does damage.

They can then ask DEFRA to intervene (if he does nothing about it).

Then, either he does it, or they do....and then by god it will cost

I think (IIRC) he is also obliged to contain them and keep rabbit fences under good repair....something along those lines.

Given the damage the buggers do, and the rate at which they breed, its a wise ruling

They still look very sweet in the park though (My wife says I am scitsofrenic (sorry about the spelling ), I talk to them in the park, and mullah them on the farms)

[bullbarrel]

By the way, where do you live (profile a bit empty).

Probably people here willing to help the cull.