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Rabbits tend to evoke multiple responses in many people. When faced with fuzzy, little baby bunnies, many people think they are cute and wish to keep them as pets. However, when the bunnies grow into rabbits and damage vegetables, fruits, flowers, and trees, these nurturing feelings often give way to feelings of contempt.
There are three kinds of "rabbits" in Wisconsin: cottontail, showshoe hare, and very rarely jackrabbits. Cottontails (Sylvilagus spp.) are small rabbits abundant in southern Wisconsin. This is the true bunny rabbit whose name is derived from it's white, cottony tail. Cottontails are the chief "pest" rabbit in Wisconsin.
Snowshoe hares are larger than cottontail rabbits. They have large, furry feet and their coat changes from brown in summer to white in winter. Snowshoe hares are common in northern Wisconsin and can be quite destructive in Christmas tree plantations.
Rabbits typically live for less than one year. However, because of their prolific breeding habits, cottontail rabbits are very abundant. Cottontails can raise up to six litters a year beginning in late March with an average litter size of six. Once a female rabbit has given birth, she is capable of breeding again very quickly. Under ideal conditions, a pair of rabbits can produce up to 36 offspring in one season. Fortunately, natural mortality factors such as weather, predators, and disease keep rabbits from realizing their full reproductive potential.
Rabbits tend to congregate in favorable habitats where there is suitable food and cover. They typically remain in a limited area of 20 acres or less unless their food source is compromised. In urban areas, locations devoid of rabbits rarely stay that way for long since rabbits are usually abundant nearby that will readily move into the site.
Cottontail rabbits burrow in natural cavities or burrows excavated by woodchucks or other animals. In spring and fall, rabbits construct a grass or weed shelter called a "form". This nest-like depression gives the rabbit some protection from the weather. In urban areas, they frequently seek shelter under decks, sheds, rock and wood piles and stacked building materials.
Rabbits can damage landscape plants throughout the year. Flowers and vegetables provide food in spring and summer while woody plants are chosen in fall and winter. Rabbits can cause extensive and expensive damage to woody plants by gnawing bark or clipping branches, stems and buds. Although their diet is diverse, they prefer apple trees, barberry, basswood, blackberries, cherry trees, dogwood, honey locust, ironwood, red and sugar maples, mountain ash, nut trees, red and white oaks, plum, rose, black and red raspberries, sumac, and willow. Young trees with smooth, thin bark are favored over more mature trees.
Rabbits are easy to identify and their damage readily detected. The best time to catch rabbits in the act of feeding is at dawn or dusk.
To determine whether the culprit that may be girdling the bark off trees and shrubs is a rabbit or a vole look at the tooth marks near the edge of the damaged area. If the problem was caused by rabbits you will see paired tooth marks at least c inch. Vole damage typically starts at the root collar area and is often restricted to the area beneath the snow. If you are trying to discern whether pruning damage to woody plants is from rabbits or deer, carefully examine the damage. Deer tend to "tear" the twigs from the plant while rabbits cut them off neatly at a 45 degree angle - almost as if it were pruned with a pruning shears. In the case of herbaceous flowers and vegetables, it's a bit more difficult to identify the culprit based on damage alone. Keep in mind the preferred host plants of rabbits when trying to make an identification. Rabbit droppings, or scat, can be used as a means of identification. They consist of small, hard, round, pea-sized pellets. They may be found in piles or spread over an area. In winter, rabbit tracks are an easy clue to their presence.
Habitat manipulation is an effective means of rabbit control. Removal of brush piles and weedy debris will eliminate places where rabbits can live and hide. This may be more practical in urban areas where wild habitats are not a factor.
Exclusion in the form of fencing is one of the best ways to protect trees and shrubs from rabbit damage. One-quarter inch hardware cloth wrapped around the trunk of a tree at a height of 18-20 inches and buried 2-3 inches in the soil will effectively protect the tree from damage. This will also protect the plant from vole damage. Keep the hardware cloth an inch or more away from the trunk.
Trapping to remove rabbits is also very effective in reducing damage. Several commercially-available live traps are suitable for trapping rabbits. You can purchase live traps at garden centers, hardware stores and from some garden supply catalogues. If cost are limited, you can even make your own rabbit trap. Contact your county Cooperative Extension office the rabbit control bulletin listed below in Sources for a copy of trap plans. Bait the traps with ears of field corn, dried apple or alfalfa and place them in areas where rabbits feed or nest. In warmer weather bait the traps with apples, carrots, or cabbage. Face traps away from prevailing winds in fall and winter to keep snow and leaves from plugging the entrance and the trigger mechanism.
Encouraging natural predators such as hawks and owls may reduce rabbit populations in some areas.
Poisoning is not an option for rabbit control. There are no poisons registered for rabbits in Wisconsin.
There are several chemical repellents that discourage rabbits from browsing. Follow label directions exactly when using such products. Use caution when using repellents since most are poisonous and for this reason alone, they are not recommended for use on school grounds. The fungicide thiram is a commercially available rabbit repellent. Other repellents include blood meal and mothballs. Blood meal doesn't weather well and must be re-applied after rain. Naphthalene mothballs are not recommended for use on school grounds because of their human poisoning potential.
Everyone has their own home remedy for deterring rabbits from feeding. Some methods may work in some situations some of the time but none have been proven to consistently control rabbits. The best control program should be designed around trapping and mechanical exclusion.
UWEX publication G1654 AProtecting Gardens and Landscape Plantings from Rabbits@ by Scott R. Craven, 7 pp.
AManaging Pest Rabbits in Gardens and Fields@ in Common Sense Pest Control Quarterly. v. 10, no. 1, Sinter 1994.
