When it comes to rabbits, some people think of furry, soft pets, but Australians think of an army of rabbits.

Australia had a rabbit infestation, a disaster, the number of rabbits once grew to 10 billion, and all fat and strong, and can even grow to nearly 100 pounds.

But for the amount of large and fat rabbits, the locals have worked hard to launch six roundups, which is why?

Soft and cuddly rabbits invade Australia

The rabbit, which has a soft and pleasant appearance, has become the biggest biological invasion in human history, and the "victim" in Australia. Yes, there were no rabbits on the Australian continent, but humans brought them there.

In 1859, English farmer Thomas Austen brought 24 domestic rabbits, 5 hares, and 72 quails to Australia.

After arriving in Australia, Austin released the rabbits into his own territory, but what he didn't expect was that this would lead to a "man-rabbit war" in Australia for nearly a century.

The rabbits Austin brought with him multiplied rapidly, and some of their offspring felt the call of nature and escaped from their territories into the wild!

The rabbits that escaped into the wild continued to reproduce, creating a wild population that could not be underestimated and continued to grow.

By 1866, it was estimated that rabbit offspring were spreading at a rate of 130 km/year; by 1907, they had spread to the east and west coasts of Australia, spreading across the entire continent.

By 1926, the number of rabbits in Australia had reached a staggering figure: 10 billion!

Even the vast Australian continent could not withstand the invasion of ten billion rabbits. Australia's agriculture, livestock, and ecology all suffered greatly from rabbit infestation.

Australia is suffering from a rabbit infestation

It is known that 10 billion rabbits eat the same amount of pasture as 1 billion sheep, which is a huge blow to Australia, where sheep farming is the mainstay of the economy.

The ancestors of these rabbits are domestic rabbits, which were domesticated from burrowing rabbits, and they all have one skill: burrowing. So the rabbits flooded the area without fear of environmental change, nibbling on pasture when the water was plentiful and digging holes for their skins when the weather was bad.

As a result, the grass was so badly damaged that cattle and sheep were left without food and the ground was full of pits, which they accidentally stepped into and fell over. Because of the potholes, all over the farm owners also have difficulty using large machinery.

In addition to agriculture and animal husbandry, Australia's ecological environment is also under serious threat, with soil erosion and soil degradation. Also, dozens of native animals have become extinct or nearly extinct due to the explosion of rabbits.

In order to save the economy and the ecological environment, the Australian government has come up with many ways to regulate the rabbit, opening a "human-rabbit war" and rounding up the rabbit several times.