Observations on the dispersal of the European rabbit flea, Spilopsyllus cuniculi (Dale), through a natural population of wild rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.)

1971 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 129 ◽  
Author(s):  
RT Williams ◽  
I Parer
Keyword(s):  
Natural Population ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Oryctolagus Cuniculus ◽  
Social Groups ◽  
European Rabbit ◽  
Previous Suggestion ◽  
Rabbit Population ◽  
Data Support ◽  
Breeding Seasons ◽  
Time Away

The dispersal of the European rabbit flea, S. cuniculi, through a population of wild rabbits in a 550-acre enclosure was studied. It took 18 months (June 1968 until November 1969), and two rabbit breeding seasons before S, cuniculi was found throughout the population. The number of fleas observed on individual rabbits was much higher during each rabbit bieeding season than in the non-breeding periods. In most cases, the spread of fleas into the various social groups of rabbits occurred during the rabbit breeding season, and appeared to take the form of fleas from an infested group of rabbits being dispersed to a neighbouring uninfested one. This dispersal of S, cuniculi coincided with the dispersal of juvenile rabbits, which were most heavily infested with rabbit fleas at the end of each rabbit breeding season. Three instances of fleas being dispersed to non-neighbouring social groups of rabbits were observed, and these occurred between the 1968 and 1969 rabbit breeding seasons. It is possible that in these cases the fleas were introduced by the dispersal of adult rabbits from warrens infested with S, cuniculi. The data support a previous suggestion that these fleas, on a non-breeding rabbit population, spend most of their time away from the host. in the rabbit burrows.

Obsevations on the behaviour of the european rabbit flea, Spilopsullus cuniculi (Dale), ona natural population of wild rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.), in Australia

1971 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 41 ◽  
Author(s):  
RT Williams
Keyword(s):  
Population Size ◽  
Natural Population ◽  
Oryctolagus Cuniculus ◽  
European Rabbit ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Rabbit Population ◽  
Group A

The behaviour of S, cuniculi was studied on a natural rabbit population present on an island in Lake Bathurst, N.S.W. Four individually marked groups of fleas and an unmarked control group, a total of 454 in all, were released onto five rabbits trapped at one location. Surveys of the rabbits and their fleas were carried out during the first, second, eighth, and fourteenth weeks after the fleas were released. Rabbit breeding before the fourteenth week resulted in an increase, due to breeding, in the number of unmarked fleas recovered at that time. During weeks one, two, and eight, 316 rabbits, equivalent to three times the estimated population size, were examined for fleas, and only 77 were recovered. Of these, 64 (88 %) were found on rabbits trapped within 25 yd of the point at which they were released. Nine rabbits resident in this area accounted for 52 of these 64 fleas, and there were frequent changes in the degree and composition of the infestations of these rabbits. Two rabbits upon which fleas had been released had lost 94 and 96 % of their fleas within 10 days. It is suggested that these results indicate that many fleas were living freely within the rabbit burrows in the immediate area in which they were released.

The Establishment and Spread of Spilopsyllus Cuniculi (Dale) and Its Location on the Host, Oryctolagus Cuniculus (L.), In the Mallee Region of Victoria.

1976 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 29 ◽  
Author(s):  
RCH Shepherd ◽  
JW Edmonds
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Oryctolagus Cuniculus ◽  
Myxoma Virus ◽  
The Body ◽  
European Rabbit ◽  
Initial Release ◽  
Breeding Seasons

European rabbit fleas (Spilopsyllus cuniculi) (Dale)) were released into a population of wild rabbits at 7 sites on Pine Plains in the Mallee district of Victoria, Australia, and their establishment and distribution observed monthly for 4 years. After 12 months, including one breeding season, the fleas were found on some rabbits up to 0.8 km from some release sites. By the end of the second breeding season, the distance of spread had doubled, and 4 years after the initial release, including 5 breeding seasons, about 95% of rabbits caught carried S. cuniculi. The furthest spread was about 13 km. When the initial release was made during the summer months, the non-breeding season, spread was slow; in one area, it took 2 years for S. cuniculi to become firmly established. When examples of S. cuniculi infected with myxoma virus were released, no establishment of the disease was observed. The numbers of S. cuniculi per rabbit were low during the first breeding season, but they were high, up to 500/rabbit, after 4 years. In most cases, the fleas were seen on the ears, pinnae and head of the rabbit and occasionally in the body fur. The highest numbers were usually found on pregnant lactating does about to litter, but some bucks also carried a large number.

scholarly journals Myxomatosis: the occurrence of antibody to a soluble antigen of myxoma virus in wild rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.), in Victoria, Australia

1978 ◽  
Vol 81 (2) ◽  
pp. 245-249 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. W. Edmonds ◽  
Rosamond C. H. Shepherd ◽  
I. F. Nolan
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Infection Rate ◽  
Oryctolagus Cuniculus ◽  
Myxoma Virus ◽  
European Rabbit ◽  
Soluble Antigen ◽  
Relative Timing ◽  
North West ◽  
The North ◽  
Semi Arid

SummaryThe occurrence of antibody to myxoma virus in wild rabbits following epizootics is highest in the semi-arid north-west of Victoria and lowest in temperate southern Victoria. Occurrence ranges up to about 90% in the north-west and to about 70% in the south except on the Western Plains where epizootics are rare and antibody occurrence seldom exceeds 30%.The establishment of the European rabbit flea may be changing the pattern of occurrence of antibody in the north-west by causing spring outbreaks of myxomatosis. It is suggested that the effects of the replacement of a simple recurring system of epizootic and breeding season several months apart by the occurrence of myxomatosis twice in the same year, once coincident with the breeding season, will be complex. The occurrence of detectable antibody may be less dependent on the infection rate and may be dependent to some extent on the relative timing of spring myxomatosis and the breeding season.

scholarly journals Myxomatosis: the introduction of the European rabbit flea Spilopsyllus cuniculi (Dale) into wild rabbit populations in Australia

1971 ◽  
Vol 69 (3) ◽  
pp. 331-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. R. Sobey ◽  
Dorothy Conolly
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Release Site ◽  
Myxoma Virus ◽  
European Rabbit ◽  
Wild Rabbit ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Breeding Seasons

SUMMARY1. The European rabbit flea Spilopsyllus cuniculi (Dale) bred successfully in wild rabbits on three properties in New South Wales and, within two breeding seasons, almost every rabbit shot within a quarter of a mile of a release site was infested.2. It was demonstrated that the flea transmitted myxoma virus in the field.3. In areas where more than 75 % of the rabbits shot at the beginning of the breeding season were flea-infested and myxoma virus was present, populations failed to show the expected summer build-up.

Age, Sex and Season: Factors which Determine the Trap Response of the European Wild Rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus

1980 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 421 ◽  
Author(s):  
JC Daly
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Natural Population ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Sexual Maturity ◽  
Oryctolagus Cuniculus ◽  
Adult Population ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Wild Rabbit ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Probability Of Capture

Factors determining the trap-response of the rabbit, investigated in a natural population at Urana, N.S.W., included the age and the sex of the rabbit and the season in which it was trapped. Differences were also observed between rabbits living in two adjacent habitats. Mark-recapture data, derived from 52 trips undertaken over 30 months, did not show a uniform probability of capture within the adult population. Adult rabbits were most trappable when they were not breeding (late summer to midwinter); at this time males and females were equally trappable but individual differences were noted. During the breeding season all adults were difficult to trap, males more so than females. Trappability increased with age in young rabbits and declined at sexual maturity. Trap-response was random with respect to the animal's genotype as determined by four polymorphic enzyme loci. Markrecapture- analysis is unlikely to be an accurate means of estimating the parameters of rabbit populations; full enumeration of the population is necessary.

Observations on Variations in the Sex Ratios of Wild Rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.), in Victoria

1981 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 361 ◽  
Author(s):  
RCH Shepherd ◽  
JW Edmonds ◽  
IF Nolan
Keyword(s):  
Sex Ratio ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Oryctolagus Cuniculus ◽  
Sex Ratios ◽  
European Rabbit ◽  
Male Preponderance

There was a preponderance of females in wild rabbits collected in Victoria before 1974. This preponderance was established in subadults; in adults the sex ratio tended towards equality or a preponderance of males. The preponderance of females was most marked after the breeding season. A change to male preponderance in the Mallee region coincided with the establishment of the European rabbit flea.

Experimental Ecological Studies on a Subalpine Rabbit Population. 2. The Effect of Sodium and Nutritional Supplementation on Breeding and Physiological Condition.

1982 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 451 ◽  
Author(s):  
BJ Richardson ◽  
PG Osborne
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Oryctolagus Cuniculus ◽  
Physiological Condition ◽  
Nutritional Supplementation ◽  
Protein Deficiency ◽  
Ecological Studies ◽  
Rate Of Growth ◽  
Rabbit Population

Part 1 (ibid. pp. 443-450) was not abstracted. 2. Supplements of salt, grain or both offered to wild rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) in ACT, Australia, had no effect on length of breeding season and although the condition of the young rabbits improved they still differed in adrenal histology, incidence of anaemia and rate of growth from those in other parts of Australia. The cause of the pathology was not known, though protein deficiency was suggested as the most likely explanation.

Habitat and Warren Utilization by the European Rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.),as Determined by Radio-Tracking

1981 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 581 ◽  
Author(s):  
SH Wheeler ◽  
DR King ◽  
MH Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Oryctolagus Cuniculus ◽  
European Rabbit ◽  
Native Vegetation ◽  
Radio Tracking ◽  
Radio Transmitters ◽  
Below Ground

'Rabbits equipped with miniature radio transmitters were located when at rest during the day at Cape Naturaliste, W.A. The study site was open pasture with numerous warrens, surrounded by and containing patches of native vegetation in which there were few warrens. Rabbits for instrumentation were live-trapped on the pasture and were located by radio once per day during each of four tracking periods in February, March-April (non-breeding season), May, and June (breeding season). A total of 31 individuals provided 284 locations, 263 (93%) of which were in the scrub. Of 216 locations in the scrub where the position of the rabbit (above or below ground) was known, 164 (765%) were above ground. Individual rabbits were found at several places within their resting areas, some of which were over 100 m into the scrub. The relevance of these results to current methods of rabbit control is discussed.

The ecology of the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) in coastal southern Western Australia

1998 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurie E. Twigg ◽  
Tim J. Lowe ◽  
Gary R. Martin ◽  
Amanda G. Wheeler ◽  
Garry S. Gray ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Adult Female ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Oryctolagus Cuniculus ◽  
European Rabbit ◽  
Demographic Changes ◽  
High Rainfall ◽  
Nonbreeding Season ◽  
Exponential Rates ◽  
Free Ranging

Demographic changes in three free-ranging rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) populations were monitored over 4 years in southern Western Australia. Peak densities followed periods of high rainfall and pasture biomass. The breeding season was prolonged, often extending from at least April to November, with some pregnancies occurring outside this period. Fecundity, determined by the autopsy of pregnant offsite rabbits and the known length of each breeding season, appeared to be relatively high, with the potential for 34–39 kittens doe-1 year-1; however, because not all females are pregnant in all months, the overall productivity of these populations was estimated at 25–30 kittens adult female-1 year-1. Exponential rates of increase varied from 0.13 to 0.30 during the breeding periods and –0.05 to –0.14 during the nonbreeding season. Kitten survival was generally low whereas some adults lived for more than 5 years. Two patterns of myxomatosis were observed: annual epizootics of the disease (3 of 4 years) and an epidemic that slowly spread over many months. European rabbit fleas were most abundant during winter–spring and attained highest densities on adult female rabbits.

scholarly journals Evidence for use of both capital and income breeding strategies in the mangrove tree crab, Aratus pisonii

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jade Carver ◽  
Morgan Meidell ◽  
Zachary J. Cannizzo ◽  
Blaine D. Griffen
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Breeding Strategy ◽  
Reproductive Period ◽  
Breeding Strategies ◽  
Mangrove Tree ◽  
Income Breeding ◽  
Aratus Pisonii ◽  
Breeding Seasons ◽  
And Storage ◽  
Capital And Income Breeding

AbstractTwo common strategies organisms use to finance reproduction are capital breeding (using energy stored prior to reproduction) and income breeding (using energy gathered during the reproductive period). Understanding which of these two strategies a species uses can help in predicting its population dynamics and how it will respond to environmental change. Brachyuran crabs have historically been considered capital breeders as a group, but recent evidence has challenged this assumption. Here, we focus on the mangrove tree crab, Aratus pisonii, and examine its breeding strategy on the Atlantic Florida coast. We collected crabs during and after their breeding season (March–October) and dissected them to discern how energy was stored and utilized for reproduction. We found patterns of reproduction and energy storage that are consistent with both the use of stored energy (capital) and energy acquired (income) during the breeding season. We also found that energy acquisition and storage patterns that supported reproduction were influenced by unequal tidal patterns associated with the syzygy tide inequality cycle. Contrary to previous assumptions for crabs, we suggest that species of crab that produce multiple clutches of eggs during long breeding seasons (many tropical and subtropical species) may commonly use income breeding strategies.

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