Rabbits in Victoria: An Introduced Legacy of Ecological Change
Few introduced animals have transformed Australia’s environments as profoundly as the European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus). Brought to Victoria and other colonies in the 19th century, rabbits multiplied at astonishing rates, spreading across the continent to become one of the most destructive invasive species in history (Rolls 1969). Their burrows, grazing, and unchecked populations devastated native plants, altered landscapes, and placed immense pressure on Aboriginal communities, farmers, and wildlife (Williams et al. 1995).
What began as a colonial pastime of hunting and aesthetics became an ecological disaster with repercussions still felt today.
The Introduction of Rabbits to Victoria
Rabbits were first introduced to mainland Australia by early colonists, but the most notorious introduction occurred in Victoria.
The Austin Family: In 1859, Thomas Austin, an English settler living at Barwon Park near Winchelsea (on Wadawurrung Country), released 24 rabbits for hunting sport. Austin believed “a few rabbits could do little harm and provide a touch of home” (Rolls 1969, p. 47). This decision created the foundation of Australia’s rabbit plague.
Earlier introductions: Smaller releases had occurred in New South Wales and Tasmania from the 1820s onwards, but none spread as explosively as the Austin release (Stodart & Parer 1988).
Rapid spread: Within a decade, rabbits multiplied into the millions across Victoria and spread into South Australia and New South Wales. By the 1890s, they had reached Queensland and Western Australia, covering most of the continent (Williams et al. 1995).
The Austin estate remains infamous in environmental history, with the rabbit plague often described as “Australia’s greatest biological invasion.”
Rabbits on Wadawurrung Country
The introduction of rabbits into Victoria is inseparable from Wadawurrung Country, where the infamous release of 24 rabbits by Thomas Austin took place at Barwon Park near Winchelsea in 1859. For the Wadawurrung, this event symbolised not only ecological upheaval but also the continuation of colonisation’s dispossession (Clark 1990).
Barwon River and Plains: Before colonisation, the Barwon River, Lake Connewarre, and volcanic plains supported abundant native food plants such as murnong (yam daisies), wallabies, kangaroos, emus, and waterbirds. Rabbits quickly consumed these same plant resources, undermining both ecological systems and Aboriginal food security (Williams et al. 1995).
Impact on Murnong: The yam daisy, once a staple food cultivated by women, declined rapidly under pressure from sheep, cattle, and rabbits (Gaughwin & Fullagar 1995). For Wadawurrung people, this was not only a nutritional loss but also a cultural disconnection, as yam digging was tied to women’s knowledge, kinship, and ceremony.
Displacement of native animals: Rabbits competed with bettongs, bandicoots, and potoroos—marsupials that were part of the Wadawurrung diet and culture. The decline of these native animals disrupted both ecological balance and traditional hunting practices (DELWP 2021).
New food source: Rabbits did become a supplementary food for Aboriginal people in the 19th century, but their availability could not compensate for the broader collapse of Country’s native abundance. Instead, they represented a foreign disruption—a creature thriving where others were being destroyed (Rolls 1969).
Symbolic impact: For Wadawurrung people, the rabbit became a symbol of colonial arrogance: a creature brought for leisure that multiplied into destruction.
Today, the rabbit plague that began on Wadawurrung Country remains etched into the land. The scars of soil erosion, the absence of once-common marsupials, and the diminished yam fields all trace back to this site.
Impact on Ecology and Native Environments
Vegetation and Soil
Rabbits grazed heavily on grasses, herbs, and shrubs, stripping landscapes bare (Williams et al. 1995).
Overgrazing caused severe soil erosion, gullies, and desertification in fragile environments (Stodart & Parer 1988).
Native grasslands and wildflowers were among the first to be lost, replaced by hardy weeds (Rolls 1969).
Impact on Native Animals
Rabbits outcompeted marsupial herbivores like bettongs, bandicoots, and wallabies for food (Williams et al. 1995).
Loss of vegetation exposed small animals to predators and destroyed nesting cover.
Predator dynamics shifted—foxes and feral cats, introduced to control rabbits, also preyed heavily on native wildlife, compounding ecological damage (Rolls 1969).
Wetlands and Rivers
Rabbits undermined riverbanks with burrows, collapsing soil into waterways and degrading water quality (DELWP 2021).
The arrival of rabbits is considered one of the key drivers in the decline of small to medium-sized marsupials across southeastern Australia.
Indigenous Communities and Rabbits
For Aboriginal peoples across Victoria, the arrival of rabbits disrupted both ecological balance and cultural practices.
Traditional food resources like yam daisies (murnong) were decimated by rabbit grazing, compounding the effects of sheep and cattle (Gaughwin & Fullagar 1995).
Hunting landscapes changed dramatically; rabbits provided a new food source, but their presence marked dispossession from Country and the collapse of ecosystems tied to cultural law (Clark 1990).
For the Wadawurrung and neighbouring groups, the story of the rabbit plague is entwined with colonisation, land loss, and environmental upheaval.
Colonial Responses and Rabbit Control
As populations exploded, colonists quickly realised the scale of the crisis.
Fencing: Farmers built rabbit-proof fences to protect crops and pasture. Victoria’s fences in the late 1800s were precursors to the massive intercolonial rabbit-proof fence in Western Australia (Stodart & Parer 1988).
Hunting and trapping: Millions of rabbits were trapped and sold for meat and fur, creating a significant industry (Rolls 1969).
Biological control: In the 20th century, scientific measures were attempted:
Myxomatosis virus (1950s): Initially reduced populations by up to 99%, but rabbits developed resistance (Williams et al. 1995).
Rabbit Calicivirus (RHDV, 1990s): Caused further declines, though effectiveness has since lessened (DELWP 2021).
Ongoing management: Poisoning, warren destruction, and biocontrol remain central to rabbit control today.
Despite these measures, rabbits remain entrenched in Victoria’s landscapes.
Population Then and Now
At colonisation (1830s–1850s): Rabbits were absent from Victoria before Austin’s release in 1859. Native marsupials like bettongs, potoroos, and bandicoots filled grazing niches (Stodart & Parer 1988).
By 1900: Rabbit populations in Victoria and beyond had exploded into the hundreds of millions, described as “plagues of fur.” Reports described paddocks “moving with rabbits,” leaving land barren (Rolls 1969).
Today: Rabbits remain one of Australia’s most abundant invasive mammals.
In Victoria, they are widespread across rural and semi-rural landscapes, with estimates in the tens of millions (DELWP 2021).
They continue to cause economic damage to agriculture (estimated at over $200 million annually nationwide) and ongoing ecological harm (Williams et al. 1995).
Symbolism and Meaning
For colonists: At first, rabbits symbolised nostalgia, leisure, and hunting sport. Within decades, they became symbols of plague and destruction (Rolls 1969).
For Aboriginal peoples: Rabbits represented dispossession, as native food plants were destroyed and landscapes transformed (Clark 1990).
Today: Rabbits are reminders of colonial arrogance and the fragility of ecosystems. Their story is a lesson in how one decision can reshape an entire continent.
Conclusion
The history of rabbits in Victoria is a story of unintended consequences. From Thomas Austin’s release at Barwon Park in 1859 to today’s ongoing control measures, rabbits have reshaped the land, devastated native plants and animals, and become one of the greatest ecological challenges in Australian history.
Their legacy is etched into the soil erosion gullies, the vanished native marsupials, and the shell of cultural food plants once central to Aboriginal life. Rabbits remain a stark reminder that ecological introductions carry deep and lasting consequences—and that true balance on Country requires respect for native systems.
References
Clark, ID 1990, Aboriginal Languages and Clans: An Historical Atlas of Western and Central Victoria, 1800–1900, Monash University, Melbourne.
Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) 2021, Invasive Species in Victoria: Rabbits, Victorian Government, Melbourne.
Gaughwin, D & Fullagar, R 1995, ‘Aboriginal shell middens in Victoria: past use and present significance’, Australian Archaeology, no. 41, pp. 15–22.
Rolls, EC 1969, They All Ran Wild: The Animals and Plants that Plague Australia, Angus & Robertson, Sydney.
Stodart, E & Parer, I 1988, Rabbits in Australia, CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne.
Williams, K, Parer, I, Coman, B, Burley, J & Braysher, M 1995, Managing Vertebrate Pests: Rabbits, Bureau of Resource Sciences/CSIRO, Canberra.
Written, Researched and Directed by James Vegter 16/09/2025
Magic Lands Alliance
Sharing the truth of Indigenous and colonial history through film, education, land and community.
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Magic Lands Alliance acknowledge the Traditional Owners, Custodians, and First Nations communities across Australia and internationally. We honour their enduring connection to the sky, land, waters, language, and culture. We pay our respects to Elders past, present, and emerging, and to all First Peoples communities and language groups. This article draws only on publicly available information; many cultural practices remain the intellectual property of communities.