Count Warrens or Rabbits?

Liddy Nevile, Rabbit Sweep, Bellarine Landcare.

 “In many areas of Australia, rabbits depend on warrens for shelter from climatic extremes, predator avoidance and also for successful breeding. Warrens are destroyed using ripping or, in rocky or inaccessible areas, explosives. Since rabbits do not readily dig new warrens, rabbit populations do not persist in areas where warrens are effectively destroyed and re-colonisation is made less likely.”
from "NATSOP-RAB005 National Standard Operating Procedure: Rabbit warren destruction by ripping"
https://pestsmart.org.au/toolkit-resource/rabbit-warren-destruction-by-ripping/ accessed 13/4/2026

Here's another report, this time of ripping in arid areas of Australia:

"Destroying rabbit warrens by ripping caused an immediate reduction in rabbit activity and there were still 98% fewer rabbits counted by spotlight in ripped plots five months after ripping. Seven years after ripping no active warrens were found in ripped plots, whereas 57% of warrens in unripped plots showed signs of rabbit activity."  from https://era.dpi.qld.gov.au/id/eprint/1944/ accessed 13/4/2026

So the question might be: is it better to focus on rabbits killed or warrens destroyed? This writer contends the research suggests the latter.

When rabbits become a problem, usually when they are most frequently seen, many land managers start to want them to be controlled and swing into action using several, hopefully, of the usual techniques, depending on lots of local conditions. Typically, after a successful cull, measured by how many are being seen, the land manager relaxes and does another of the millions of tasks to preserve the environment. The problem that remains, however, is often that not all the rabbits are seen and some are likely to be reaching maturity and soon ready to come out of their burrows. This usually means there will be a similar need for action a year later, maybe even sooner.

From the rabbits' perspective, the best survival strategy is to breed fast - and we all know they do! Typically, we believe counting them and comparing the result with other counts will show if they are increasing in number or being controlled. But how many can be seen depends on a number of factors, not the least being how many kittens are out of view in warrens. If it is the warren that is counted, then even if there are lots of invisible rabbits at the start of the work, a significant number of rabbits will not breed, and that means the population will diminish. Well, so long as other warrens are also eliminated. 

Rabbit Free Australia has an opinion about this:

"A strategic rabbit control program that features warren and harbour destruction is the most cost-effective way to reduce rabbit populations and prevent ongoing damage, particularly when applied over large, semi-arid areas." from https://www.rabbitfreeaustralia.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/PestSmart-2012_Factsheet-Warren-and-harbour-destruction.pdf accessed 13/4/2026

They add:

"Removing above-ground harbour (ie shelter) at the same time will increase the effectiveness ..."

So suppose the land manager has the time, effort and expense again, could there be a better result from the effort, cost and time spent?

If the target of the exercise is the destruction of warrens instead of the rabbits, what happens? Hopefully, the resources that might be necessary for repeated rabbit control in the future can be used to immediately control the rabbits far more effectively for those future years.

 Typically, there might be evidence of rabbits frequenting 5 spots supported by only one warren. Similarly, there might be 5 entrances to a single warren and more than a single family of rabbits occupying it – sometimes including a fox or a blue-tongue lizard.

Destruction of warrens is best done when it results in an apparently undisturbed flat surface. This is usually achieved using powered machines by someone who is experienced and skilled in removing the whole warren. Implosion can also be effective but is potentially more expensive.

So what has to be done?

The strategies for clearing rabbits above ground and even in the warrens ar well knon and should be activated in the usual way.

First, there has to be an accurate reading of the physical evidence of rabbits. It is important to distinguish temporary shelter often used for safety and comfort, from active warrens. The size of the warren needs to be accurately identified – its depth and its spread on land needs to be made clear on the land surface. The accuracy of these is critical to the success of the exercise. 

It is common to send dogs running around in the area before starting work so all the rabbits return to the warren. Warren destruction should not, in general, be undertaken until the rabbits in the burrow have been fumigated (there are some warren destruction techniques that will instantly kill any rabbits so there is no need to fumigate first). Fumigation can happen immediately before the warren destruction takes place. Knowing the size of and entrances to the warren will make this more efficient and effective. 

For warren destruction, there are ripping techniques and implosion techniques. The former are quicker than the latter but usually involve both precision ripping time and machinery transport time. One way to limit this is to plan ripping in the neighbourhood and share the cost of travel. The ripping can be done by someone with a small excavator or a large one, depending on the circumstances. It is usual for someone called a ‘spotter’ to work with a machine operator to guide them. 

When the situation makes it dangerous or unwise for some other reason to use machinery and rip, carefully controlled implosion can be the answer. This is a very skilled activity but can be done effectively where there are special circumstances such as warrens under precious plants, cultural heritage assets, etc.

Often the situation calls for destruction of warrens under houses, sheds, etc. Neither ripping nor implosion can be used but ferrets can chase the rabbits out of a warren and afterwards, rabbit-proof fencing can be laid around the hole entrances. Piles of rubbish and other objects can also provide shelter for rabbits digging warrens, so these need to be removed. Again, ferrets can help. It must be remembered that even if the piles are to be burnt, warrens under them can hold rabbits during a fire causing unnecessary anguish, so they need to be eliminated with bait or fumigant.

It is important to know that there are not likely to be as many warrens as there is places with evidence of rabbit activity but it is critical to be sure that all warrens are removed and something is done to secure the now rabbit-free area.