Rabbits out of control in twelve municipalities east of Montpellier

Le lapin est un animal nocturne ou crépusculaire : “le soir, ça pullule, c'est impressionnant” note cet observateur. Archives Midi Libre – F.A.

D'année en année, le fléau de la prolifération des lapins de garenne sur les terres agricoles de 12 communes de l'est montpelliérain, semble hors de contrôle.

Since when did they take their ease in the plain of the Land of Gold ? How many are there ? Tens of thousands c&#39 It is safe and nothing seems to stop this proliferation of rabbits east of Montpellier. "In 2023, we took 12,000 and it's as if we had done nothing! It's going to be the same this year, at least. It's catastrophic." Bernard Ganibenq chairs the Mauguio hunting society, with 380 members, including 80 rabbit hunters who don't know what to do. On the Lansargues side, 5,000 rabbits were killed.

Did they weaken the railway ?

The damage in the agricultural sector is counted in thousands of euros in the 12 municipalities concerned, classified in red by the State services and the Chamber of Commerce. #39;agriculture who spare no effort and regularly bring together a specialized commission where the debates are sometimes very tense. "It's an extremely difficult situation" we recognize at the Chamber of Agriculture. Along the railway line of the high-speed line, some local residents are now worried about the burrows dug in the mounds which could ultimately weaken the whole. 

Different means of struggle!

– Ferrets. Browsing consists of: introduce ferrets into the burrows which immediately brings out the rabbits, they are then captured and released in territories devoid of wild rabbits . Wù they wouldn't necessarily adapt so well. But the Hunting Federation of Aveyron, that of Haute-Loire, that of Aude have already done so. reintroduced supernumerary rabbits from the Lands of Gold onto their lands. 

– Fox. It is the first predator of the wild rabbit but still classified as a wild rabbit. harmful in France. This aid in the fight against rabbits has, however, been widely used. decommissioned for the 12 municipalities of the Gold countries. Foxes have even been killed. released last October. 

– Raptors. Falconers also intervened in the territory to collect rabbits.

– The company of Mauguio who hunts every day, except Tuesday, pleadedé for the Federation to launch a genetic study on rabbits. "They are resistant &agrav; myxomatosis, ça questions us, as does their reproduction rate. This scientific study will undoubtedly tell us more, at least we will be clear about it.", says President Bernard Ganibenq .

"No way is really effective"

Olivier Grard, boss of Gradilis in Mudaison, continues to warn about the scourge. At the start of 2024, while the cereal or arboriculture plots are still white from the night frost, Olivier Grard surveys his fields with impatient steps. "The problem has grown to such an extent that no means of action is now effective. The damage is already considerable and will continue to be so this year, he said, pointing to a wheat crop whose tender green shoots are not yet visible. already exist no longer on the borders.

Olivier Grard has two ferrets which allow targeted operations to get the rabbits out of the burrows. Midi Libre – E.L.

Also read: Faced with the proliferation of rabbits, foxes help farmers in Hérault

Along the ditches, the holes of the burrows line up and when night comes, their inhabitants only have to jump out to find the pantry . Over time, the plot will probably be completely eaten away. Elsewhere, in the nurseryman's orchards – Gradilis exports apple seedlings throughout Europe – mounds of earth appear between the trees. Overpopulation pushes rabbits to all kinds of daring measures, including setting up their warrens in the middle of the fields.

On this plot sown with wheat, the shoots were eaten. Midi Libre – E.L.

The scourge appeared around 2015, taking on an unprecedented scale with covid: fewer hunters, less human presence, and less surveillance of animal populations have increased the problem. &amp ;quot;We are losing hundreds of hectares of production, apple trees, melons, cereals, salads, the vines are also affected. Here, however, we are in an exceptional terroir. There is water, sun, no wind that is too impactful. As nothing works against rabbits, I invite my fellow farmers to do like me: everyone protect themselves by fencing their plots! lance Olivier Grard.

On this plot of Mudaison, the sufficiently buried and fine mesh fence had its effect. Midi Libre – E.L.

A response to the invasion which has a cost: the operator has already spent 40,000 € to enclose 60 ha, with an ingenious system of gates so that hunters can move around, and a fine mesh fence, sufficiently buried and curved to avoid digging. "I carried out this experiment on a plot of Mudaison, and it was effective: on the screened plot, I had no damage in 13 months . For me, this is the only thing that will work". Gradilis has established a five-year plan to finance the protection of all its crops with fencing.

Which cannot necessarily be done by all of the 2,000 farmers in this area, despite their high added value. 

Train: the LGV not protected enough

On the side of State services, we confess to the DDTM (departmental directorate of territories and the sea) a « subject of significant concern » and the need for « simultaneous measures » to act against proliferation which remains poorly understood.
The prefectural decree classifying rabbits as a species likely to cause damage has been renewed for the hunting year which ends on June 30. It’s a safe bet that he will be again.
Beyond hunting and harvesting actions, the question of refuge areas is crucial. In eastern Montpellier, rabbits move between cultivated land and abandoned plots, such as bramble bushes, in which it is impossible to hunt. These areas pose a problem but belong to private owners, who are not necessarily informed or concerned.
Also impossible to handle the rifle near the railway tracks. However, the fences installed by Oc Via to protect the high-speed line are unsuitable and rabbits have colonized these areas. The Chamber of Agriculture and the Hérault Hunting Federation wrote to the operator last April. The genetic study set up by hunters (read above) is of great interest to the State: the epidemics which, elsewhere, regulate rabbit populations, and make them a near-threatened species in Europe (the last step rankings before being threatened) are ineffective here.

12 municipalities classified red

12 communes. In the territories of these 12 communes, the rabbit has been classified as pest or now Esod, like species likely to cause damage. These are Mauguio, Mudaison, Lansargues, Candillargues, Saint-Aunès, Baillargues, Le Crès, Marsillargues, Montpellier Saint-Brès, Saint-Just and Saint-Nazaire-de-Pézan. Cournonterral and Cournonsec have left the red classification to once again become municipalities classified orange, which is also the case for Lattes, Sauvian and Villeneve-les-Maguelone. In these municipalities, hunting periods are extended and browsing is authorized.

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