Despite multiple attempts to cull rabbit numbers there is still a heavy presence along the Taylor River. Photo: Marlborough Express
A poison drop to cull the number of rabbits in central Blenheim has been delayed after warm weather meant the pest already had "a lot of feed".
The Marlborough District Council earlier this year agreed to poison rabbits along Taylor River ahead of night shooting to try and bring numbers down.
The poisoning, which was expected to start this month, will include a Pindone poison drop along the river reserve and neighbouring properties.
However, there was a lot of grass at the moment, so the rabbits would be less tempted by bait, causing a delay in the programme.
A spokesperson for the Marlborough District Council said a "non-poisonous pre-feed" was currently being laid, to see how many rabbits were taking the bait.
They had done this by setting up bait stations to let rabbits get used to them.
"There is a lot of feed around at the moment and the weather is warmer than anticipated," the spokesperson said.
The council expected to start the poisoning in August.
A council spokesperson said in November last year a spike in numbers was due to the time of year and was expected to trend downward heading into autumn.
But the number of rabbits along the river was said to be "extremely high" in May.
Rabbits along the river and surrounding areas had long been an issue, particularly because burrows were compromising the stopbank network.
Damage to stopbanks on the Taylor River due to rabbit burrows. Photo: Marlborough Express
The council undertook a rabbit control operation in the Taylor River area south of the Burleigh Bridge using the Rabbit Haemorrhagic Disease Virus - K5 Strain (RHDV1-K5) in response to large numbers of rabbits in the area in 2021.
At the time, the council said the area had a high number of wild rabbits and "conventional control methods", such as shooting, were challenging to do in the area given it was open to the public.
Last year, the council ran a night shooting operation using an approved pest removal operator over a three-month period, with 293 rabbits killed, the report said.
But shooting alone was said to not effectively reduce rabbit numbers to an "adequate and acceptable level" in the long term.
Monitoring showed numbers remained "fairly steady" shortly after a virus-laced carrot drop in 2021 and into 2022, at about 170 rabbits. A count in June 2023 put the population at about 140.
Two areas of the western side of the river had been "heavily affected" by rabbits, the report said.
This included a 49-hectare area which had a vineyard, river reserve, plant nursery, office buildings and a beef farm.
A second 21ha area with a "light commercial" subdivision, river reserve, disc golf and a forestry company base with a dwelling was also "heavily affected".
A rabbit in a vineyard near the Taylor River in October last year. Photo: Marlborough Express
The cost of the operation was expected to be $23,000. This included $2500 for bait, $500 for fencing, $14,000 for labour, $3000 for consent costs and $3000 for follow-up shooting.
The council recently counted rabbits over three nights in the upper Awatere.
An environment and planning information package from this month said over the 91km of track inspected, 550 rabbits were counted, with the majority of rabbits located in the Molesworth area.
A ward night count route had been abandoned as the land use had changed which made the old route impassable, the report said.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.