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Plague of rabbits

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Plague of rabbits. P 442. History of the rabbit in Australia. 24 Rabbits introduced into Australia in 1859, imported by Mr Thomas Austin of Barwon Park, near Geelong, Victoria Rabbits bred to be used for hunting - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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PLAGUE OF RABBITS P 442
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Page 1: Plague of rabbits

PLAGUE OF RABBITS

P 442

Page 2: Plague of rabbits

HISTORY OF THE RABBIT IN AUSTRALIA 24 Rabbits introduced into Australia in

1859, imported by Mr Thomas Austin of Barwon Park, near Geelong, Victoria

Rabbits bred to be used for hunting By 1900 the rabbit had effectively

covered all of Australia except the tropics.

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1859-1951 - Our Hundred Year WarThomas Austin of GeelongHas a feeling he doesn't belong.The man is lonely, hates his farmThe place seems empty, without charm.Thomas Austin gets quite rabid -What this country needs is rabbit.Sits at desk, pulls out equipment,Writes to England for a shipment.The year is eighteen fifty-nine.Rabbits arrive in ten months time.No sooner do they disembarkThey run berserk in Barwon Park.See them hopping, leaping, jumping,Their lovable back feet thumping.See them sniffing, whiffing, scouting,Their furry fluffy cuteness flouting.Thomas Austin writes wholesaler,Rabbits really love Australia.

But in the morning when he wakes,Oh the horror that awaits!The much prized and treasured star petHas turned into a living carpet.See them digging, jumping, hurdling,With pip-squeak squeal bloodcurdling.'Oh my god,' says Thomas Austin'This here damage don't bear costin'!'Thomas winces as he huntsShooting rabbits ten at once.But things soon get a bit too rough,For he's not shooting fast enough.Come the neighbours with their shotgunsOn the trail of the little hot ones.Kicking, shooting, punching, shovingBut the beasts not overcoming.

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Even facing grim starvationRabbits keep up procreation The government puts out a rewardFor some technique to halt the horde.Coleman Phillips earns some meritsWhen he lets out gangs of ferrets.Some build a wall like that in ChinaOnly longer and much finer.Others hit on a brilliant planTo stick the rabbit into a can!Rabbits may be pestilentialBut rabbit stew has great potential.For those who put their creed in this,Rabbit stew becomes big business.At the height of the rabbit maraud,Nine million cans are sent abroad.

Rabbits in complete euphoria,Chomping their way through Victoria.

Nothing's sweet or cute or funnyWhen it comes to Austin's bunny.

Over hillocks, under fences,The countryside has no defences.

The land becomes a barren floorAll the way to the Nullarbor.

Nothing green has a shred of chanceFrom Coolgardie to Esperance.

For the initial twenty-fourAre now a monster omnivore!

Seven eat as much as a sheepAnd rabbits never oversleep.

.

Page 5: Plague of rabbits

Meanwhile States increase their prizes,Hoping something materialises.Of the thousands who have a go,The one to find it was Aragao.He sought the Pied Piper mixed with Moses,What he got was Myxomatosis.What a great man! His one big failureWas not to do it in Australia!For despite his good intention,We took decades to use his invention.The one to mend the fatal errorWas the dogged McNamara.What a woman! She ignores allFear of chemical control.

Her research may cause kerfuffleBut the woman doesn't ruffle.

And so the virus that's terrificWorks its way across the Pacific.

McNamara's totally lost inUndoing the harm of Thomas Austin.

Studies species, breeding habits,Spurts the virus into rabbits.

Just when progress seems most static,Comes a sudden change dramatic.

On the south-east Gippsland coastRabbits stumble round comatosed.

In nineteen fifty-one aloneTen million die racked to the bone.

And as a reward for all their pain,Jean McNamara is made a Dame.

Robert Treborlang Australia

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PRICKLY PEAR

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CACTOBLASTIS CATERPILLAR

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Slow growth

Rapid growth Stabilization

Three stages in S-shaped growth curve

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EARTH’S CARRYING CAPACITY

“In 1961 the earth had 3 billion people. They were using 0.5 of the sustainable resources of earth. In 1986 the earth had 5 billion people. They were using all of the sustainable resources.

Ever since we have been running what might be called an environmental deficit budget which is only sustained by plundering our capital base.

By that I mean: overexploiting fisheries. overgrazing to the point of desertification. destroying forests. polluting the waters and atmosphere, including

greenhouse gasses. You have seen the results of Bush deficit budgets. The

same sort of thing is happening on a planetary basis. At the rate we are going, we would need 2 whole planets to sustain our rapacious appetites in 2050. Something has obviously got to give — most pleasantly our wasteful use of energy”.

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HUMAN POPULATION

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LYNX AND SNOWSHOE HARE

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POPULATION CYCLES

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10 year cycle – explained by 1) Crowding affects the organisms endocrine systems: stress from high density may alter hormone balance and reduce fertility, increase aggressiveness, and induce mass emigrations.

2) Caused by a time lag in the response to density-dependent factors, which cause the population to overshoot and undershoot the carrying capacity. High density of snowshoe hares causes a deterioration of food quality. May involve predation as an accessory factor.

3) Periodical cicadas have population cycles of 13 to 17 years. This may be an adaptation to avoid predator-prey interactions. Cicada populations are controlled in some local regions by a fungus whose spores can survive in soil for the years between cicada outbreaks.

Page 14: Plague of rabbits

The populations of lynx and showshoe hares fluctuate approximately every 10 years.

1. Hare population increases providing more food for the lynx

2. Lynx population increases reducing the hare population.

3. Not enough food left for lynx so their population decreases

4. Low levels of lynx means hare population can increase

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OVER POPULATION

AND EXTINCTION

Extinction is the disappearance of an entire species. This can occur naturally or unnaturally.

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OVER POPULATIONOverpopulation Equals Disaster

Overpopulation is the single, most pressing problem facing humanity

today. It's also one of the most completely

ignored problems www.truth101.org/vs-overpopulation.html

Overpopulation is not simply a function of the size or density of the population, but rather the number of individuals compared to the resources . Wikipedia.org

Page 17: Plague of rabbits

“There have never been more people on Earth. There have never been more cows on Earth, nor pigs, nor chickens. We are using more pesticides today than at any other time in history and we are losing a greater percentage of the crops. At the same time, there has never been less clean water on Earth. There has never been less available topsoil, nor fewer fish, nor fewer mature trees. There has never been less cause for optimism for the future of the human race. Our natural resources are disappearing at an unbelievable rate, and our so-called leaders offer only cosmetic solutions. The Earth's population calls for more of everything while the Earth demands time to recover from years of abuse.” ~ Howard Lyman

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TENT CATERPILLARS

Tent caterpillars regularly show overpopulation followed by rapid decline.

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3 OUTCOMES OF OVERPOPULATION

Num

ber o

f ind

ivid

uals

Time

Original carrying capacity

Lower carrying capacity

Overpopulation

extinction

1

2

3

p453

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UK – DEER POPULATION

2 million deer in UKNumbers have doubled in last 10 years70 000 deer killed / year on roads20 drivers killed per year200 accidents per dayWoodland bird habitat lostBird numbers have decreased since no undergrowth.

100 000 deer need shooting per year.

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