Rabbit numbers are on the rise in Central Otago and farmers have been advised to be vigilant about control.
This year's Great Easter Bunny Hunt resulted in a bag of 20,201 rabbits - nearly double last year's total. There were 10 more teams entered this year, but the 500 huntersstill averaged more rabbits per head.
Jeff Donaldson, manager of the Otago Regional Council-owned Regional Services, believed the rabbits had had a couple of good breeding seasons.
He urged farmers to continue to shoot and use other pest-destruction strategies. He said the RHD virus would hit about 50 per cent of rabbits regardless of how breeding seasons affected population.
