Did Covid Kickstart This Rabbit Revival?

Rabbit numbers have dropped by 60% in the past 20 years but, after 18 months of lockdowns, numbers are rising, says Simon Whitehead

- Simon Whitehead

I have yet to meet anyone who doesn’t have a soft spot for the wild rabbit. Hard-nosed farmers who curse its existence, want not for extinction but merely sensible and sustainable numbers. Conservationists marvel at how their unique close-crop grazing has sculpted our landscape, and men, women and children treasure their blissful memories formed while hunting the humble bunny with gun, rifle, dog or ferret.

Everybody has a tale to tell about the rabbit. Once thought of as being as common as a bee or a sparrow, it wasn’t until the rabbit’s struggle was highlighted in the media that the wider world began to realise what cherished creatures they are, though they’ve had their scuts up against the wall, or hedge, in a battle for survival.

Barometer

A solid barometer of the rabbit population used to be the numbers we saw in our gardens, nibbling on the roadside verges or in the far corner of the meadow or field. Even the most urban or unusual of environments, such as industrial and housing estates, held small but stable populations. It was believed that all they needed was food, cover and a will to thrive in atypical environments — but they also needed a little bit of luck now and then.

Perhaps ironically, this came in the form of a global pandemic. The advent of COVID-19 may have brought our world to its knees but it has inadvertently allowed rabbit populations to flourish.