Oryctolagus cuniculus

The European rabbit , of scientific name Oryctolagus cuniculus (Linnaeus, 1758), is a well-known Lapin in its domestic form . Only species of the Oryctolagus , Oryctolagus cuniculus is common in Europe, Australia and a little everywhere in the monde.

One distinguishes:

  • the Wild rabbit, when it is wild.
  • the Lapin domesticates, when it is resulting from breedings, with many races and varieties.

Nomenclature and systematic

Not to confuse European, single rabbit léporidé of the kind Oryctolagus with others Rabbit S of the family of the léporidés , pertaining to other kinds such as for example the Rabbit of America.

Sometimes recognized subspecies of wild rabbit:

  • ITIS
    • Oryctolagus cuniculus cuniculus (Linnaeus, 1758), the ancètre of domestic rabbit.
    • Oryctolagus cuniculus huxleyi Haeckel, 1874
  • NCBI
    • Oryctolagus cuniculus algirus , whose presence is limited to the Galicia, with the Portugal, and the south-western half of the Iberian peninsula. Of size a little smaller than O.c.cuniculus

Diseases

The European rabbit is prone in particular to two important diseases, which had an significant impact on its populations wild and raised difficulties with the stockbreeders: the Myxomatosis and the hemorrhagic Viral disease (VHD), against which there exists a vaccine, as well as intestinal problems due to the Escherichia coli enteropathogenes (EPEC) against which the vaccine is being studied.

The species and the man

The recent diffusion of rabbit in Western Europe, on the scale of the history, constitutes one of the most important migrations of wild animals due to the man. It results primarily from exchanges between human groups, since the Antiquité until bottom Moyen-âge. In parallel the rabbit passed from the wild rabbit to the rabbit burrow around the year 1000, then change of status of wild animal to that of pet (Callou, 2003).

In certain countries, he is regarded as a vermin. It is the case in Australia, where a stockbreeder slackened in nature about thirty European rabbits in 1859. In this country deprived of carnivores, the rabbits thrived. Hardly one half-century later, the wild rabbit population rose to 30 million individuals and threatened agriculture and ecological balance buildings. After the introduction of the myxomatosis, one arrived from there, in 1995, to introduce on this continent a devastating virus of rabbits: Rabbit Haemorrhagic Disease Virus (RHDV) to rebalance their population.

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