THE REPRODUCTIVE PRODUCTIVITY OF THE WILD RABBIT (ORYCTOLAGUS-CUNICULUS) IN SOUTHERN ENGLAND ON SITES WITH DIFFERENT SOILS

Rabbit numbers are rising in most parts of Britain. Previous research in southern England has indicated that the rate of increase in spring due to breeding may vary according to soil type. This has serious impl ications for the likely rate of invasion into new habitats and for pla nning control operations. To investigate the hypothesis, post-mortem e xaminations of over 2500 rabbits from 14 sites on sand, chalk or clay were made. The length of the breeding season and percentage of females breeding differed significantly between soil types but litter size an d intra-uterine mortality did not. The product of breeding season leng th and litter size results in an estimate of annual productivity per a dult female. This was 22, 20, and 14 young born per Female on clay, ch alk, and sandy sites, respectively. Rabbits may invade new habitats, s uch as set-aside, at different rates according to soil type and theref ore require different levels of control regime for population manageme nt.