Substantial numerical decline in South Australian rabbit populations following the detection of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus 2

Mutze, Greg; Preu, N. De; Mooney, Trish; Koerner, Dylan; McKENZIE, D.P.; Sinclair, Ron; Kovaliskli, John; Peacock, David

doi:10.1136/vr.104734

Cited by 17 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 32 publications

(49 reference statements)

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“…However, associations between RHDV2 arrival and population impact were hampered by the lack of adequate pre‐arrival data for some sites in those states. Although impacts were substantial at some sites, they were somewhat lower than those recorded at more arid, inland sites in South Australia (80%; Mutze et al, ) and substantially lower than the initial impacts of classical RHDV when it entered Australia (Mutze, Cooke, & Alexander, ). However, the average reductions were similar to that reported for rabbit populations in southern Spain (57% reduction) following the arrival of RHDV2 (Guerrero‐Casado, Carpio, & Tortosa, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 79%

“…Unlike RHDV (Robinson, So, Müller, Cooke, & Capucci, ), RHDV2 causes fatal infections in juvenile rabbits <5 weeks of age (Neave et al, ) and can also infect rabbits recovered from previous RHDV infection or vaccination (Le Gall‐Reculé et al, ; Neave et al, ; Peacock et al, ). Initial estimates of the impact of RHDV2 on wild populations from two sites in South Australia indicated a reduction in rabbit abundance of around 80% (Mutze et al, ). As reductions in rabbit abundance of this magnitude would result in huge economic benefits to Australian agriculture (Cooke, Chudleigh, Simpson, & Saunders, ), it would be advantageous to understand the wider dynamics and impact of RHDV2.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Emerging RHDV2 suppresses the impact of endemic and novel strains of RHDV on wild rabbit populations

Ramsey

Cox

Strive

et al. 2020

Journal of Applied Ecology

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Multi‐strain, host‐disease dynamics describe a system where multiple strains of a pathogen compete for susceptible individuals of a single host. The theoretical properties of these systems have been well studied, but there are few empirical studies in wildlife hosts. We examined the impacts of two novel strains of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) recently introduced into Australia, one inadvertently (RHDV2) and one deliberately for rabbit biocontrol (RHDV‐K5), by analysing long‐term monitoring data for introduced European rabbits Oryctolagus cuniculus from 18 sites throughout Australia. We examined population‐level impacts using rabbit spotlight counts pre‐ and post‐arrival of the two strains. We also analysed serological data to determine potential interactions among the introduced and existing field strains of RHDV, as well as a pre‐existing benign strain of calicivirus (RCV‐A1). Serological analyses suggested that RHDV2 arrived in Australia during spring 2014 and spread rapidly through the Australian rabbit population within 2 years. Following the establishment of RHDV2, rabbit abundance was reduced by an average of 60%, with impacts most pronounced in South and Western Australia. In contrast, the deliberate release of RHDV‐K5 had little impact on rabbit populations. Although RHDV2 has spread rapidly throughout Australia, our serological analyses do not support the observation that RHDV2 is rapidly replacing existing field strains of RHDV, as was previously reported in Australia and Europe. Nevertheless, RHDV2 has negatively impacted the ability of RHDV and RCV‐A1 to spread within rabbit populations, most likely due to its ability to infect juvenile rabbits, thereby removing them from the pool of susceptible individuals available to be infected by competing strains. Synthesis and applications. The impact of the release of a novel strain of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV‐K5) for rabbit biocontrol in Australia has been suppressed by the emergence of a competing strain, RHDV2. Hence, the success of further releases of similar RHDV strains for rabbit biocontrol appears doubtful. Despite this, RHDV2 has suppressed rabbit abundances by an average of 60%, with impacts most pronounced in South and Western Australia. Whether the incursion of RHDV2 leads to the competitive exclusion of other endemic RHDV strains remains to be resolved. However, the existence of partial cross‐immunity could allow some level of coexistence between RHDV2 and RHDV strains, at least in the medium term.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 79%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emerging RHDV2 suppresses the impact of endemic and novel strains of RHDV on wild rabbit populations

Ramsey

Cox

Strive

et al. 2020

Journal of Applied Ecology

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“…In Australia, where each state once had teams within veterinary, agricultural and environmental research institutions involved with surveillance and monitoring, it is now increasingly the case that only one or two individual scientists or veterinarians work in conjunction with inter‐state and international colleagues to remain informed and piece together epidemiological events. A recent example of this is a study by Mutze and others, 2 summarised on p 574 of this week's issue of Vet Record , in relation to the emergence and spread of rabbit haemorrhagic disease 2 (RHDV2) through the population of introduced wild European rabbits in Australia.…”

Section: Figurementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The rabbit carcases obtained in this way not only provided information on the rate of spread of RHDV2 but also suggested that this second virus variant is displacing the former RHDV1 virus, as has been the case in Europe. 4 Greatly reduced abundance of rabbits, monitored by regular night-time spotlight counts and live-trapping studies at two widely spaced locations in South Australia, 2 indicates that RHDV2 is causing high mortality, despite earlier laboratory trials suggesting it was not as virulent as RHDV1, 5 although opinion is divided on whether this is the case. 6 The arrival of RHDV2 in Australia can be seen as an unplanned addition to a series of introductions of biological control agents that began with myxoma virus in 1950 7 and continued with the use of European rabbit leas (Spilopsyllus cuniculi) in the late 1960s 8 then 'Spanish' rabbit leas (Xenopsylla cunicularis) as additional vectors of myxoma virus, 9 followed by RHDV1 in 1995.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Brian Cooke, MSc, PhD, Institute for Applied Ecology, University of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, 2611 Australia E-mail: brian.cooke@canberra.edu.au doi: 10.1136/vr.k2105 FIG1: Semi-schematic diagram, redrawn using data from Saunders and others 14 and extended to include the recent spread of RHDV2, 2 showing changes in rabbit abundance in relation to the introduction of biological control agents into north-eastern South Australia. Dotted lines indicate uncertainty due to lack of continuous annual data.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Long‐term monitoring of disease impact: rabbit haemorrhagic disease as a biological control case study

Cooke

2018

Veterinary Record

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RHDV2 outbreak reduces survival and juvenile recruitment, causing European rabbit population collapse

Letty,

Besnard,

Chatelain

et al. 2024

Ecosphere

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Infectious diseases can cause considerable mortality in vertebrate populations, especially when a new pathogen emerges. Quantifying the impact of diseases on wild populations and dissecting the underlying mechanisms requires longitudinal individual monitoring combining demographic and epidemiologic data. Such longitudinal population studies are rare. Rabbit hemorrhagic disease (RHD) is one of the main causes of the decline in European wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) populations. A new genotype of RHD virus (RHDV), called RHDV2 or GI.2, emerged in 2010, posing a new threat to previously weakened populations, particularly as this virus can infect individuals already immune to classical RHDV strains. Taking advantage of intensive monitoring from 2009 to 2014 by physical captures and microchip detections of a semi‐captive population of rabbits, we finely assessed the demographic impact of an initial RHDV2 outbreak that occurred in the population and identified the most affected demographic parameters. A multi‐event modeling analysis revealed decreased survival in both juveniles and adults in 2011 and 2012, suggesting an RHDV2 outbreak for two consecutive years. The short‐term survival benefit of vaccination against classical RHDV strains only during these years, and the recovery of carcasses with RHDV2 detection, supported this hypothesis. Variations in population vaccination coverage also explain the difference in adult survival between the two years of the outbreak. And the transient protective effect of vaccination could explain the prolonged duration of the outbreak. A brief episode of myxomatosis in 2011 seems to have had only a limited impact on the population. During outbreak years, in individuals not recently vaccinated, monthly juvenile survival crashed (0.55), and annual adult survival was three times lower than in normal years (0.21 vs. 0.69). The combination of successive juvenile and adult survival estimates for unvaccinated rabbits during the outbreak years resulted in a very low recruitment rate in the breeding population. Finally, RHDV2 outbreaks appear to have caused mortalities comparable to those caused by older classical RHDV strains and may have a strong demographic impact on wild populations of European rabbit. This work highlights the importance of long‐term observational and experimental studies to better understand the impact of epidemics on animal populations.

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Substantial numerical decline in South Australian rabbit populations following the detection of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus 2

Cited by 17 publications

References 32 publications

Emerging RHDV2 suppresses the impact of endemic and novel strains of RHDV on wild rabbit populations

Emerging RHDV2 suppresses the impact of endemic and novel strains of RHDV on wild rabbit populations

Long‐term monitoring of disease impact: rabbit haemorrhagic disease as a biological control case study

RHDV2 outbreak reduces survival and juvenile recruitment, causing European rabbit population collapse

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