$83,000 fine amid explosion of wild species hiding in backyards – realestate.com.au

Australians are being warned to check backyards after wild activity has hit shock devastation – with one state imposing an $83,000 fine for anyone who doesn’t act.

The target is a beloved, cuddly family pet in many Australian states, which the Invasive Species Council has called the “most destructive invader in Australian history” – an “ecological disaster” that is hitting native species and dramatically outnumbering human populations by 200 million to 27 million.

MORE: ‘Idiot’: Aussie was ordered by the municipality to cut up the lawn

Mirvac to renovate $233 million flood-ravaged shopping center site

The rabbit was seized by Queensland authorities and taken into the care of the Grafton Rabbit Sanctuary in NSW. Photo: Nathan Edwards

---

Rabbits may seem cuddly and cute to play with as pets, but they are estimated to cause around $200 million a year in damage to crops and the environment, according to the Queensland government, which is cracking down hardest on the wild creatures whose populations have exploded in recent years.

Logan City Council warns “under the Biosecurity Act 2014, rabbits are banned in Queensland. It is an offense to keep any species as a pet. The penalty for illegally distributing/selling, moving, keeping or feeding rabbits is $83,400 (up to 500 penalty points).”

Despite this crackdown, average homeowners who keep them as pets elsewhere in the country are inadvertently sabotaging efforts to keep numbers down. Because rabbits can travel faster than an average e-scooter (about 56 km per hour) and can cover more than 100 km per day, escaped or released pets can become a huge problem.

Shockingly, wild rabbits now even tunnel through graves June Bulletin An infestation was reported which led to more than 15,000kg of baited carrots having to be distributed for clearing.

“It’s heartbreaking. The burrows are everywhere, not just next to graves, but right in them. It’s so disturbing and honestly just disrespectful,” one horrified resident told the publication. “If that was your child, your partner or your parent buried there, you would be shocked to see it.”

“These are sacred places. These are not 100-year-old forgotten plots, some are only a few decades old. This should be a place of peace and remembrance. Instead, it is a rabbit hole.”

MORE: Shock rate move from big banks

Brisbane’s suburbs are going crazy with 18 reaching $2 million – five are already over $3 million

Rabbits have become so feral that they even dig through graves, roam backyards and playgrounds. Source: JuneeBulletin/Facebook.

---

A bait program was implemented to combat this outbreak. Source: JuneeBulletin/Facebook.

---

The Queensland Government’s tough stance on backyard pet rabbits is supported by its claims that “a significant proportion of wild rabbits in the Sydney and Tweed Heads areas are the result of released or escaped rabbits”.

Homeowners in Melbourne’s south-east have spoken out YahooNews they had already been inundated with rabbit plaques on their properties in the town of Casey.

“If you drive through our street in the middle of the night, you will see at least a hundred rabbits at a distance of 500 meters,” says an unknown resident.

Zero tolerance could soon be the only option for many states as numbers explode, with the federal government currently looking for someone to take on the newly elevated role of Australia’s Chief Environmental Biosecurity Officer – a position on the same level as the country’s Chief Plant Protection Officer and Chief Veterinary Officer.

This role could mean greater cooperation between states for joint action to reduce rabbit numbers before more native species become extinct.

Rabbits are considered cut and cuddly in some parts of the country, but are banned in Queensland. Photo: Annette Dew

---

Dr. Carol Booth of the Invasive Species Council said it was ‘a significant structural change to raise the profile of environmental biosecurity threats such as bird flu, myrtle rust and fire ants within the department’.

“Environmental invaders have already caused enormous damage to Australia, damaging land and water and causing extinctions. They have been by far the leading cause of animal extinctions and new threats such as murder hornets, predatory snails or rock snot will cause further declines if they reach our shores.”

Applications for the new position of Australia’s Chief Environmental Biosecurity Officer close on November 23.

How to check backyards for a feral rabbit problem:

Check for:

– Fresh feces.

– Fresh scratching of grass/ground.

– Vegetation chewed up to 40 cm above the ground.

– Burrowing or worn tracks under structures or rubble piles.

– Warrens.

(Source: NSW Government)

What to do if you have a pet rabbit:

– Do not release him into the wild.

– Turn it over to your local government office.

– Hand it over to Biosecurity Queensland or your local equivalent.

– Take it to the RSPCA for possible relocation along the highway.

– Dispose of it legally and humanely.

(Source: Queensland Government)

Decision checklist when confronting the rabbit problem. Source: NSW Government

---