Featured Alien: European Rabbit

Scientific Name: Oryctolagus cuniculus

How It Came To Hawai‘i :

Rabbits came to the Islands on European sailing ships and were thriving on Ford Island in Pearl Harbor by 1825. Rabbits were also released on other small islands of the Hawaiian chain.

Impact Since Its Arrival:

Rabbits are adorable pets, but those that escape from cages or are released by owners are a threat to the native ecosystem. On Laysan (northwest Hawaiian island) they stripped the island of vegetation and caused the extinction of several kinds of plants and the birds dependent on those plants.

"Rabbit Island," southeast coast of O‘ahu

Rabbits were brought to Manana Island in 1890 when a new meat business was attempted. The business failed, but the rabbits persisted. In 1994, biologists began removing them from Manana Island, now a wildlife sanctuary. Island vegetation, including native plants, is now recovering. Manana Island is known to many as Rabbit Island.

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