Annals of Applied Biology (2003) 142, 317-322

J. Dendy, G. McKillop, S. Fox, G. Western and S. Langton (2003)
The development of a model to assess the effects of rabbit grazing on grass
Annals of Applied Biology 142 (3), 317-322
Abstract: Grass for use as silage is widely grown in the UK. However there is little information on the effects of rabbit grazing on crop yield. In a three-year trial, grass was grown in six enclosures following current agronomic procedures and was subjected to grazing by two population densities of rabbits. The annual yield loss at the end of the trial was found to be 1% per rabbit ha^-1. The yield loss per rabbit was calculated to be around 200 kg and the financial loss was calculated as £3.40 per rabbit at 1998 prices (approx. £17 t^-1). This new information provides farmers with a better understanding of the economics of damage caused by rabbits enabling them to make more informed decisions as to whether their rabbit population needs to be managed, or whether their crop needs to be protected by some other means.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Julie Dendy

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
damage/losses/economics

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Oryctolagus cuniculus	Grasses/turf/rangeland	United Kingdom