Planning for systematic extermination programs began in the 1940s, when an estimated 1 billion rabbits were devouring produce, causing land erosion and destroying native habitats. In 1984 a virus that began sweeping through China's rabbit population gave Australians new hope. Impressed by the well-documented results, Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization imported a batch of the virus from the Czech Republic in 1991 and, after three years of safety tests, set up the experimental station on Wardang Island for field trials. But then came the outbreak. So far an estimated 5 million rabbits have died, and the epidemic continues to move north and east.
Some critics remain unconvinced.
We're left with the image of a mad scientist who doesn't really have control of his experiment but is assuring everyone that everything will be just fine. Environmentalists have also voiced concerns that a sudden disappearance of rabbits could have unfortunate effects on the wildlife food chain. One possibility is that foxes and feral cats, which depend on rabbits for food, could instead turn to small native fauna, some of which are endangered species. But for the moment at least, farmers are overjoyed about the killer virus. The damage rabbits have done to the environment out here cannot possibly be understood by anyone who hasn't lived it.