Oryctolagus cuniculus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Conservation for Oryctolagus cuniculus was delayed for several decades after their decline became apparent. Efforts began to take shape in the late 1980's due to previous political isolation of its native range and the lack of information on the species as a keystone to Iberian ecosystems. The issue of eradication of O. cuniculus from introduced areas (e.g. Australia, New Zealand, and many islands) may have diminished the appearance of rabbit decline in its native range. Increased interest in the specialist predators that depend upon the rabbits and the issue of the sustainability of hunting populations have brought O. cuniculus into the public eye, but fail to address some issues of rabbit conservation, such as its role as an ecosystem modeler and the effects of agriculture on populations (Gibb 1990, Ward 2005).

Oryctolagus cuniculus occurs in some protected areas within its natural range, including Donana National Park in Spain (Ward 2005) and Serra da Malcata Nature reserve in Portugal (700 km²) where the Iberian lynx is protected.

Dan Ward's 2005 report outlines specific goals needed to achieve rabbit recovery:
- Establish rabbit monitoring programs to accurately describe decline directly.
- Create and implement a management plan for rabbit recovery that prioritizes critical ranges and populations. Some plans have begun for local regions, including Donana National park.
- Programs to limit the incidence and impact of new and existing diseases may be difficult in the wild, though some success has been observed in captive populations. Current vaccines do not confer total immunity to RHD or myxomatosis, have side effects such as increasing vulnerability to predators, and have short-lived effectiveness. A genetically modified live myxomatosis virus vaccine, LapinVac, is controversial because of the possibility of unpredictable evolution of the virus, and its potential spread to rabbit populations outside the natural O. cuniculus range where eradication, not conservation, is the objective. Increasing habitat quality may indirectly help rabbit disease resistance. Controlling disease vectors for myxomatosis has not been found to be effective. Preventing the spread of modified immunocontraceptive viruses engineered in Australia to control rabbit fertility may become an issue.
- Reducing hunting impact is not guaranteed to reduce decline because disease effects often outweigh hunting as a threat, and because implementation of restrictions would likely not be realistic given the prevalence of hunting in Iberia. Revisions to existing hunting seasons have been proposed and some tested, but even moving the season to summer when rabbits are most abundant has caused concern in trials because the overall catch increases and the season coincides with a peak in death from disease. A growing recognition among hunters of the issue of rabbit decline has led to some self-restraint, and though often well intentioned, uninformed management strategies are leading to inappropriate actions. Rather than focusing on hunting restraint, many hunters exert efforts to reduce rabbit predators, which are not directly responsible for decline. As a very large demographic, hunters could represent a powerful force in maintaining sustainable hunting populations, if the awareness of the issue of decline increased within this group.
- Rabbit populations affected by agriculture represent a sensitive issue, as rabbits are typically seen as a pest and an economic liability for farmers. Despite pressures from environmental groups, many farmers continue to take measures to eradicate rabbits from their land, even in areas where rabbit populations have declined dramatically. Awareness among farmers of rabbit conservation issues is low. Government policy allows farmers to control rabbits with permits, and though crop loss due to rabbit damage is economically subsidized, no requirement of those compensated is made for conservation.
- Halting and reversing habitat loss and fragmentation was aided in the 1990s by the establishment of many national parks in Spain, but much optimal rabbit habitat is on private land. A shift from high-intensity farming and monoculture forestry back to mixed agro-forestry and small scale farming would help sustain rabbit populations. Natura 2000 promotion of sustainable development and EU subsidies supporting environmentally friendly agriculture are promising but underfunded and too new to demonstrate a significant impact. Eucalyptus plantation removal has demonstrated a positive effect on rabbit populations, but may compromise other environmental issues such as erosion and conditioned bird habitat, as well as economic impact.
- Reintroductions have been a key focus of conservation efforts, with up to 500,000 released annually in Spain and France. The efforts so far have not increased rabbit populations, due to increased mortality from predation and inadvertent spread of disease, which may actually have a net negative impact. The flaws in reintroduction practices do not completely negate the importance of the efforts, which have been shown to help sustain predators and hunting populations. The success of reintroductions may be increased by fencing from predators and competitors and preventing dispersal.
- Though rabbit predators have not directly caused rabbit decline, factors that have caused initial decline (e.g. disease, habitat loss) are exacerbated by some opportunistic predators (while not caused by specialist predators like the Iberian lynx and Imperial eagle). Game keeping efforts to increase rabbit populations often focus on predator reduction, sometimes counter productively, causing decline of top predators that are already threatened. Efforts could be more productively focused on habitat protection, reduction of rabbit mortality by humans (hunting and poisoning), and reducing disease impacts.

The importance of O. cuniculus within its natural range requires that it be considered for listing in spite of its global abundance. It is a keystone to the Iberian ecosystem, as prey for specialist predators (Virgos et al. 2005) and as a landscape modeler (Delibes et al. 2000, Ward 2005). It is an important game species in Spain and Portugal (Ward 2005).