Do peri-urban areas act as refuges for the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus L.)?: Raw data

<p>The European rabbit is a key species in the Iberian Peninsula, as well as invasive in many areas around the world. However, European rabbit populations declined due to different diseases and now they are increasing in a patchy way The reasons are not clear, but it has been posed that peri-urban sites may be some favoured sites and even act as refuges for rabbits. The paper of reference analyzes the case in 18 municipalities in Madrid Region (Spain), where rabbit abundance was sampled in empty lots surrounding different types or urban areas as well as distant control sites. Other potentially relevant factors for the abundance of the species are included as control variables, namely factors associated with human occupation, plant cover and landscape elements which can favour the presence of predators. The paper shows that human factors are relevant for the species, but urban encroachment has a mixed effect, resulting in a reduced abundance of rabbits around single-family residential areas, while road proximity increases their abundance. The results point to human activity as a facilitator of the local development of dense rabbit populations due to interference with predators, but that free-ranging pets and predators living in neighborhoods with large gardens may reverse this situation locally.</p>