Abstract
LITTLE reliable information is available on the breeding cycle of the wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) in New Zealand, though there is a widely held popular belief, quoted by Marshall1, that in certain localities the animal breeds throughout the year. An investigation of the reproduction of the wild rabbit has been carried out on the Gwavas Forest area, thirty miles south-west of Napier in the Hawkes Bay Province of the North Island of New Zealand over the period March 1950–February 1952. During this time, 1,766 adult females were examined: a female having a paunched weight of more than 700 gm. was taken as adult, this being the lightest weight of any pregnant animal found.
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References
Marshall, F. H. A., Proc. Roy. Soc., B, 122, 413 (1937).
Watson, J. S., and Tyndale-Biscoe, C. H., N.Z. J. Sci. Tech., B, 34, 427 (1953).
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Hafez, E. S. E., J. Agri. Sci., 42, 189 (1952).
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WATSON, J. Breeding Season of the Wild Rabbit in New Zealand. Nature 174, 608–609 (1954). https://doi.org/10.1038/174608b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/174608b0
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