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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
Environment
Donna Lu

Australia’s rabbit invasion traced back to single importation of 24 animals in 1859

Australia Thomas Austin
European Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) at Kings Creek.
Five rabbits arrived with the first fleet but the Australian population did not explode for 70 more years. They then spread at a rate of 100km a year. Photograph: Goddard_Photography/Getty Images/iStockphoto

The Australia-wide rabbit invasion resulted from a single introduction of just 24 animals in 1859, new research has confirmed.

Using historical and genetic data, scientists have pinpointed the origins of what they call “the fastest colonisation rate for an introduced mammal ever recorded”.

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