An epidemiological study of the spread of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus amongst previously non-exposed rabbit populations in the North Island of New Zealand

Sanson, R.L.; Brooks, Hannah; Horner, G.W.

doi:10.1080/00480169.2000.36174

Cited by 10 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Where they were carefully monitored, these seem to have been generally successful (Sanson et al 2000). Rabbit populations were reduced by about 50% within 6 weeks of release, although results were variable (range 0-77%).…”

Section: Initial Impact Of Rhdmentioning

confidence: 93%

Rabbit haemorrhagic disease and the biological control of wild rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus, in Australia and New Zealand

Cooke¹,

Fenner²

2002

Wildl. Res.

123

124

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This review considers the history of the discovery of the rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) and its spread throughout the world in domestic and wild rabbits, which led eventually to its deliberate release into Australia and New Zealand for the control of a major pest, the introduced wild rabbit. The physical and genetic structure of RHDV is now well understood, and its pathogenic effects are also well known. The epidemiology of rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHD) has been clearly documented in the field in European countries, Australia and New Zealand. Since its initial spread through largely naïve populations of wild rabbits it has established a pattern of mainly annual epizootics in most areas. The timing of epizootics is dependent on climatic variables that determine when rabbits reproduce and the appearance of new, susceptible rabbits in the population. The activity of RHDV is also influenced by climatic extremes that presumably affect its persistence and the behaviour of insect vectors, and evidence is growing that pre-existing RHDV-like viruses in some parts of Australia may interact with RHDV, reducing its effectiveness. The timing of epizootics is further modified by the resistance to RHD shown by young rabbits below 5 weeks of age and the presence of protective maternal antibodies that also protect against fatal RHD. RHD has reduced rabbit abundance, particularly in dry regions, but rabbits in cooler, high-rainfall areas have been able to maintain their populations. In Australia and New Zealand, RHD has raised the prospects for managing rabbits in low rainfall areas and brought substantial economic and environmental benefits.

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Section: Initial Impact Of Rhdmentioning

confidence: 93%

Rabbit haemorrhagic disease and the biological control of wild rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus, in Australia and New Zealand

Cooke¹,

Fenner²

2002

Wildl. Res.

123

124

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“…The virulent one is the most spectacular (due to its high lethality) and is the most often found in the field. The avirulent strain has been rarely isolated (Capucci et al, 1996), but its presence is suspected in many field studies (Chasey et al, 1995;Cooke et al, 2000;Marchandeau and BoucrautBaralon, 1999;Marchandeau et al, 1998;Rodak et al, 1990;Sanson et al, 2000;Trout et al, 1997). This can be explained by a likely sampling bias, since rabbit populations have been mostly sampled after an outbreak of RHD mortality.…”

Section: A Virus Genetic Diversitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…RHDV strains isolated in the field are generally highly lethal (up to 95% mortality 2 days post-infection) and transmissible, but interestingly the impact of the virus has been highly contrasted. Some populations have a high proportion of seropositive rabbits in the absence of recorded mass mortality due to the m a n u s c r i p t 5 disease (Chasey et al, 1995;Cooke et al, 2000;Marchandeau and Boucraut-Baralon, 1999;Marchandeau et al, 1998;Rodak et al, 1990;Sanson et al, 2000;Trout et al, 1997),…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolution of microparasites in spatially and genetically structured host populations: The example of RHDV infecting rabbits

Fouchet

Pendu

Jean

et al. 2009

Journal of Theoretical Biology

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A c c e p t e d m a n u s c r i p t 2 AbstractSeveral studies have shown that classical results of microparasite evolution could not extend to the case where the host species shows an important spatial structure. Rabbit Haemorrhagic Disease Virus (RHDV), responsible for Rabbit Haemorrhagic Disease (RHD), which recently emerged in rabbits, has strains within a wide range of virulence, thus providing an interesting example of competition between strains infecting a host species with a metapopulation structure. In addition, rabbits may show a genetic diversity regarding RHDV susceptibility. In the present paper we use the example of the rabbit-RHDV interaction to study the competition between strains of a same microparasite in a host population that is both spatially and genetically structured. Using metapopulation models we show that the evolution of the microparasite is guided by a trade-off between its capacity to invade subpopulations potentially infected by other strains and its capacity to persist within the subpopulation. In such a context, host genetic diversity acts by reducing the number of hosts susceptible to each strain, often favouring more persistent -and generally less virulent -strains. We also show that even in a stochastic context where host genes regularly go locally extinct, the microparasite pressure helps maintain the genetic diversity in the long term while reinforcing gene loss risk in the short term. Finally, we study how different demographic and epidemiologic parameters affect the coevolution between the rabbit and RHDV.

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“…Rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) was introduced illegally into New Zealand in 1997 (Thompson & Clark, 1997). The virus causes peracute disease and high rates of mortality in rabbits, and is used as a biological control tool for wild rabbit populations (Sanson et al ., 2000; Parkes et al ., 2002). The effectiveness of the disease in reducing pest rabbit populations appears to be highly variable, and epidemics generally occur intermittently at annual or bi‐annual intervals (Parkes et al ., 2002; Henning et al ., 2005a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of weather conditions on fly abundance and its implications for transmission of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus in the North Island of New Zealand

Henning

Schnitzler

Pfeiffer

et al. 2005

Medical Vet Entomology

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Blowflies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) and flesh flies (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) are potential vectors of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) in New Zealand. The associations between habitat and weather factors on the abundance of these flies were investigated. Between October 1999 and June 2001, flies were trapped on open pasture and in dense vegetation patches on farmland in the Himatangi area of the North Island. Five calliphorid species were trapped commonly at scrub edges and the most abundant sarcophagid, Oxysarcodexia varia Walker, was trapped mainly on open pasture. An abundance peak of O. varia was probably associated with the occurrence of a rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHD) outbreak in the study area. Overall abundance of flies varied according to habitat and species, and species numbers differed between seasons and years. The all-day minimum temperature 3 weeks before trapping was a significant variable in all models of fly abundance, whereas average rainfall did not affect fly abundance. The all-day temperature range was significant only for O. varia. The influence of other climatic factors varied between fly species. Climate dependent variations in fly abundance may contribute to the risk of transmission of RHD, which occurred intermittently on the site during the study period.

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An epidemiological study of the spread of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus amongst previously non-exposed rabbit populations in the North Island of New Zealand

Abstract: Rabbit haemorrhagic disease reduced rabbit numbers on the majority of farms where the virus was released, and appears to be an effective measure for controlling rabbit populations in New Zealand.

Cited by 10 publications

References 6 publications

Rabbit haemorrhagic disease and the biological control of wild rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus, in Australia and New Zealand

Rabbit haemorrhagic disease and the biological control of wild rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus, in Australia and New Zealand

Evolution of microparasites in spatially and genetically structured host populations: The example of RHDV infecting rabbits

Influence of weather conditions on fly abundance and its implications for transmission of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus in the North Island of New Zealand

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