312 Transactions. — Zoology. 



diseases are most important and useful fnot minor and auxili- 

 ary) iu checking the breeding-powers of the rabbit. They act, 

 as it were, as the last nail in the coffin. They do not sweep 

 off their millions. I never claimed that they did. x\ll they 

 do is to keep the " minimum-of-safety stage " at its minnnum. 



I am told of an instance of a large runh older in the South 

 Island who went to great expense in turning out ferrets, stoats, 

 and weasels. These animals did not do the good he expected. 

 He consequently resorted to trapping quite lately as a remedy. 

 My opinion is that he had far better have resorted to tlie 

 spread of my four diseases, as an aid to the natural enemy, 

 and keeping the "minimum-of-safety stage" at its lowest. 

 Of course I do not know how he turned out his ferrets, stoats, 

 and w^easels^ — whether he acted like a fellow-settler of mine (Mr. 

 Eiddiford), who turned out twelve hundred pounds' worth of 

 stoats and weasels three or four years ago, and thought that 

 that was all he had to do on 50,000 acres of land. Of course 

 these stoats and weasels scattered themselves all over the coun- 

 try, and he should have imported more. I turn out the natural 

 enemy every year (ferrets). There is a proper way to do even 

 this. Settlers in New Zealand have only played with the ques- 

 tion of turning out the natural enemy as yet. Every person 

 afflicted with rabbits must turn out a certain proportion of 

 ferrets, stoats, and weasels every year, until a balance of prey 

 upon prey is attained. Nor must he act like a large runholder 

 in North Wairarapa, who tells me that his men have trapped 

 seventy ferrets within the last two years. Traps must not be 

 used. 



Natural enemies are therefore most useful. So are hunting, 

 poisoning, the digging-out of burrows, &c. The harmful things 

 are trapping, fumigating, and relying solely upon poisoning and 

 rabbit-fencing. These things will never reduce the pest ; and 

 yet Professor Thomas thinks that winter poisoning and trap- 

 ping will do so. 



Trapping, of course, is fatal to reduction. That should be 

 made a penal offence in these colonies. I would much rather 

 see a bad piece of bush country rabbity than cleared by traps. 

 Far better is it to leave it until the next poisoning, and after 

 that remedy has been applied to turn out a greater number of 

 natural enemies in that particular spot. For there is a right 

 way and a wrong way to kill rabbits. The object to be aimed 

 at is not mere killing and visible reduction, but so killing that 

 the numbers will not breed up quickly again. No worse 

 mistake could be committed, iu the present condition of the 

 Australasian Colonies, when we desire to breed up the natural 

 enemy, than the visible reduction of rabbits caused by laying 

 traps in a piece of country covered with logs, or near old 

 warrens or watercourses. The ground-vermin which are 



