Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Towards a standardized index of European rabbit abundance in Iberian Mediterranean habitats

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
European Journal of Wildlife Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

European rabbits Oryctolagus cuniculus are a keystone species in Iberian Mediterranean ecosystems. However, the reliability of methods for estimating rabbit abundance, particularly when at low numbers, is not well understood. Further, better standardization of these methodologies would allow abundance estimates to be more reliably compared between areas and periods. Consequently, we compared several frequently used methods of estimating rabbit abundance and assessed their advantages and disadvantages. During the summers of 2008 and 2009, in 11 localities of central-southern Spain we undertook (a) driving transect counts of rabbits, either at dusk or at night, (b) linear transects on foot recording rabbit signs, (c) cleared-plot pellet counts at permanent plots, and (d) standing crop counts, both with and without habitat stratification. Density estimated at night from driving transects using the Distance Sampling method (the reference method against which all other indices were compared) varied from 0 to 2.69 rabbits ha−1. Most pellet-count indices were significantly related to the reference method. In particular, cleared-plot pellet counts in permanent plots corrected for pellet persistence showed the best correlation with the reference method. In contrast, latrine counts were not related to the reference method index, and we recommend against their use. A standard methodology based on cleared-plot pellets counts could be used to monitor rabbit abundance on a large scale.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Acevedo P, Ruiz-Fons F, Vicente J, Reyes-García AR, Alzaga V, Gortázar C (2008) Estimating red deer abundance in a wide range of management situations in Mediterranean habitats. J Zool 27:37–47

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Angulo E, Villafuerte R (2003) Modelling hunting strategies for the conservation of wild rabbit populations. Biol Conserv 115:291–301

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ballinger A, Morgan DG (2002) Validating two methods for monitoring population size of the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus). Wildl Res 29:431–437

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barrio IC (2010) The rabbit as an agricultural pest in its native distribution range. Dissertation, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha

  • Barrio IC, Acevedo P, Tortosa FS (2010a) Assessment of methods for estimating wild rabbit abundance in agricultural landscapes. Eur J Wildl Res 56:335–340

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barrio IC, Bueno GC, Tortosa FS (2010b) Alternative food and rabbit damage in vineyards of southern Spain. Agr Ecosyst Environ 138:51–54

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beltrán JF (1991) Temporal abundance pattern of the wild rabbit in Doñana, SW Spain. Mammalia 55:591–599

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blondel J, Aronson J (1999) Biology and wildlife of the Mediterranean region. Oxford University Press, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Buckland ST, Anderson DR, Burnham KP, Laake JL (1993) Distance sampling: estimating abundance of biological populations. Chapman and Hall, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Burggraaf-van Nierop YD, van der Meijden E (1984) The influence of rabbit scrapes on dune vegetation. Biol Conserv 30:133–146

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burnham KP, Anderson DR, Laake JL (1980) Estimation of density from line transect sampling of biological populations. Wildl Monogr 72:1–202

    Google Scholar 

  • Cabezas S, Moreno S (2007) An experimental study of translocation success and habitat improvement in wild rabbits. Anim Conserv 10:340–348

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Calvete C, Pelayo E, Sampietro J (2006) Habitat factors related to wild rabbit population trends after the initial impact of rabbit haemorrhagic disease. Wildl Res 33:467–474

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Catalán I, Rodríguez-Hidalgo P, Tortosa FS (2008) Is habitat management an effective tool for wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) population reinforcement? Eur J Wildl Res 54:449–453

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Delibes M, Hiraldo F (1981) The rabbit as prey in the Iberian Mediterranean ecosystem. In: Myers K, MacInnes CD (eds) Proceedings of the World Lagomorph Conference. University of Guelph, Ontario, pp 614–622

    Google Scholar 

  • Delibes-Mateos M, Redpath SM, Angulo E, Ferreras P, Villafuerte R (2007) Rabbits as keystone species in southern Europe. Biol Conserv 137:149–156

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Delibes-Mateos M, Delibes M, Ferreras P, Villafuerte R (2008a) Key role of European rabbits in the conservation of the western Mediterranean basin hotspot. Conserv Biol 22:1106–1117

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Delibes-Mateos M, Ferreras P, Villafuerte R (2008b) Rabbit populations and game management: the situation after 15 years of rabbit haemorrhagic disease in central-southern Spain. Biodivers Conserv 17:559–574

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Delibes-Mateos M, Ferreras P, Villafuerte R (2009) European rabbit population trends and associated factors: a review of the situation in the Iberian Peninsula. Mamm Rev 39:124–140

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Delibes-Mateos M, Farfán MA, Olivero J, Vargas JM (2010) Land use changes as a critical factor for long-term wild rabbit conservation in the Iberian Peninsula. Environ Conserv 37:169–176

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Díez C, Pérez JA, Prieto R, Alonso ME, Olmedo JA (2005) Activity patterns of wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus, L. 1758), under semi-freedom conditions, during autumn and winter. Wildl Biol Pract 1:41–46

    Google Scholar 

  • Fernandez-de-Simon J, Díaz-Ruiz F, Villafuerte R, Delibes-Mateos M, Ferreras P (2011) Assessing predictors of pellet persistence in rabbits: towards reliable population estimates from pellet counts. Wildl Biol

  • Fernández de Simón J, Díaz-Ruiz F, Cirilli F, Sánchez F, Villafuerte R, Ferreras P (2009) Relación entre la presión de depredación y los ritmos de actividad del conejo de monte: aplicación a las estimas de densidad. In VIII Jornadas de la Sociedad Española para la Conservación y Estudio de los Mamíferos. Sociedad Española para la Conservación y Estudio de los Mamíferos, Málaga, pp 72

  • Ferreira C, Delibes-Mateos M (2011) Wild rabbit management in the Iberian Peninsula: state of the art and future perspectives for Iberian lynx conservation. Wildl Biol Pract. Available at http://socpvs.org/journals/index.php/wbp/article/view/146/212. Accessed 15 February 2011

  • Ferreras P, Travaini A, Zapata SC, Delibes M (2011) Short term responses of mammalian carnivores to a sudden collapse of rabbits in Mediterranean Spain. Basic Appl Ecol. doi:10.1016/j.baae.2011.01.005

  • Gálvez L, Belliure J, Rebollo S (2009) European rabbits as ecosystem engineers: warrens increase lizard density and diversity. Biodivers Conserv 18:869–885

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Iborra OL, Lumaret JP (1997) Validity limits of the pellet group counts in wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus). Mammalia 61:205–218

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • King DR, Wheeler SH (1985) The European rabbit in south-western Australia I. Study sites and population dynamics. Aust Wildl Res 12:183–196

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lees AC, Bell DJ (2008) A conservation paradox for the 21st century: the European wild rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus, an invasive alien and an endangered native species. Mamm Rev 38:304–320

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marchandeau S, Aubineau J, Berger F, Gaudin JC, Roobrouck A, Corda E, Reitz F (2006) Abundance indices: reliability testing is crucial—a field case of wild rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus. Wildl Biol 12:19–26

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martins H, Barbosa H, Hodgson M, Borralho R, Rego F (2003) Effect of vegetation type and environmental factors on European wild rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus counts in a southern Portuguese montado. Acta Theriol 48:385–398

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Massei G, Bacon P, Genov PV (1998) Fallow deer and wild boar pellet group disappearance in a Mediterranean area. J Wildl Manage 62:1086–1094

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Monclús R, de Miguel FJ (2003) Distribución espacial de las letrinas de conejo (Oryctolagus cuniculus) en el monte de Valdelatas (Madrid). Galemys 15:157–165

    Google Scholar 

  • Moreno S, Villafuerte R (1995) Traditional management of scrubland for the conservation of rabbits Oryctolagus cuniculus and their predators in Doñana National Park, Spain. Biol Conserv 73:81–85

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moreno S, Beltrán JF, Cotilla I, Kuffner B, Laffite R, Jordán G, Ayala J, Quintero C, Jiménez A, Castro F, Cabezas S, Villafuerte R (2007) Long-term decline of the European wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) in south-western Spain. Wildl Res 34:652–658

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Muñoz G (1960) Anverso y reverso de la mixomatosis. Dirección General de Montes, Caza y Pesca Fluvial, Madrid

    Google Scholar 

  • Murray DL, Roth JD, Ellsworth E, Wirsing AJ, Steury TD (2002) Estimating low-density snowshoe hare populations using fecal pellet counts. Can J Zool 80:771–781

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Myers K, Parker BS, Dunsmore JD (1975) Changes in numbers of rabbits and their burrows in a subalpine environment in south-eastern New South Wales. Aust Wildl Res 2:121–133

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Newey S, Bell M, Enthoven S, Thirgood S (2003) Can distance sampling and dung plots be used to assess the density of mountain hares Lepus timidus? Wildl Biol 9:185–192

    Google Scholar 

  • Palomares F (2001) Comparison of 3 methods to estimate rabbit abundance in a Mediterranean environment. Wildl Soc Bull 29:578–585

    Google Scholar 

  • Palomares F, Delibes M, Revilla E, Calzada J, Fedriani JM (2001) Spatial ecology of Iberian lynx and abundance of European rabbits in southwestern Spain. Wildl Monogr 148:1–36

    Google Scholar 

  • Poole DW, Cowan DP, Smith GC (2003) Developing a census method based on sight counts to estimate rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) numbers. Wildl Res 30:487–493

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Putman RJ (1984) Facts from faeces. Mamm Rev 14:79–97

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ríos CA (2010) Los Planes Técnicos de Caza de Castilla-La Mancha y su aplicación en la gestión y conservación de las especies cinegéticas. Dissertation, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha

  • StatSoft, Inc. (2001) STATISTICA (data analysis software system), version 6. Available at http://www.statsoft.com

  • Thomas L, Buckland ST, Rextad EA, Laake JL, Strindberg SS, Hedley SL, Bishop JRB, Marques TA, Burnham KP (2010) Distance software: design and analysis of distance sampling surveys for estimating population size. J Appl Ecol 47:5–14

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Twigg LE, Lowe TJ, Gray GS, Martin GR, Wheeler AG, Barker W (1998) Spotlight counts, site fidelity and migration of European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus). Wildl Res 25:113–122

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Twigg LE, Gray GS, Massam MC, Lowe TJ, Kirkpatrick W, Bendotti G, Chester DR (2001) Evaluation of bait stations for control of urban rabbits. Wildl Res 28:299–310

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Valverde JA (1967) Estructura de una comunidad Mediterránea de vertebrados terrestres. Monografías de la Estación Biológica de Doñana 1. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Madrid

  • Villafuerte R, Kufner MB, Delibes M, Moreno S (1993) Environmental factors influencing the seasonal daily activity of the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) in a Mediterranean area. Mammalia 57:341–347

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Villafuerte R, Calvete C, Blanco JC, Lucientes J (1995) Incidence of viral hemorrhagic disease in wild rabbit populations in Spain. Mammalia 59:651–659

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Villafuerte R, Viñuela J, Blanco JC (1998) Extensive predator persecution caused by population crash in a game species: the case of red kites and rabbits in Spain. Biol Conserv 84:181–188

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ward AL, White PCL, Critchley CH (2004) Roe deer Capreolus capreolus behaviour affects density estimates from distance sampling surveys. Mamm Rev 34:315–319

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams CJ, Parer I, Coman BJ, Burley J, Braysher ML (1995) Managing vertebrate pests: rabbits. Bureau of Rural Resources/CSIRO Wildlife & Ecology, Australian Government Printing Service, Canberra

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams D, Acevedo P, Gortázar C, Escudero MA, Labarta JL, Marco J, Villafuerte R (2007) Hunting for answers: rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) population trends in northeastern Spain. Eur J Wildl Res 53:19–28

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wood DH (1988) Estimating rabbit density by counting dung pellets. Aust Wildl Res 15:665–671

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zar JH (1984) Biostatistical analysis. Prentice-Hall, New Jersey

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This work is a partial result from the projects CGL2005-02340, CGL2009-10741, and CGL2009-11665 funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and EU-FEDER funds, and projects POII09-0099-2557 and 07/NAT/E/000742 funded by the Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha with EU-FEDER and LIFE funds, respectively. Javier Fernandez-de-Simon benefits from a FPI scholarship and Miguel Delibes-Mateos is currently holding a Juan de la Cierva research contract, both funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and the European Social Fund. We are indebted to the landowners and personnel of the study areas where we undertook this study. We thank F. Aparicio, I.C. Barrio, J.A. Blanco-Aguiar, F. Buenestado, A. Camarero, J. Cañadilla, F. Castro, B. Cooke, F. Fernández de Simón, C. Ferreira, J.E.C. Flux, J.L. García-Moreno, C. Iriarte, L.E. Mínguez, R.P. Pech, P. Peiro, S.O. Petrovan, N. Reid, P. Rodríguez, and C. Rouco for their kind collaboration and comments. G. Nugent and an anonymous reviewer provided interesting suggestions that improved the manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos, IREC (CSIC–UCLM–JCCM), Ronda de Toledo s/n, 13071, Ciudad Real, Spain

    Javier Fernandez-de-Simon, Francisco Díaz-Ruiz, Rafael Villafuerte, Miguel Delibes-Mateos & Pablo Ferreras

  2. Department of Zoology, University of Córdoba, Campus de Rabanales Ed. Darwin, 14071, Córdoba, Spain

    Francesca Cirilli & Francisco Sánchez Tortosa

Authors
  1. Javier Fernandez-de-Simon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Francisco Díaz-Ruiz
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Francesca Cirilli
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Francisco Sánchez Tortosa
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Rafael Villafuerte
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Miguel Delibes-Mateos
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Pablo Ferreras
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Javier Fernandez-de-Simon.

Additional information

Communicated by C. Gortázar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Fernandez-de-Simon, J., Díaz-Ruiz, F., Cirilli, F. et al. Towards a standardized index of European rabbit abundance in Iberian Mediterranean habitats. Eur J Wildl Res 57, 1091–1100 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-011-0524-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-011-0524-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation