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Abstract: Agricultural intensification has led to the extreme simplification of agricultural landscapes. The subsequent impoverishment of farmland plant communities can drive dramatic changes in the associated food webs of agricultural systems, with potential implications for vertebrate pest management. Weeds may provide alternative food sources for damaging species and thus contribute to reducing their damage, which is particularly desirable if the species is a valuable resource in its own right. Wild rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) are a game species of great conservation value in the Iberian Peninsula that cause frequent damage to crops. Here we describe the dynamics of non-crop plant communities over an annual cycle in a semiarid Mediterranean agro-ecosystem, and discuss the potential linkages and implications for rabbit damage management. Overall, the availability of alternative food for rabbits was very low, especially in the most extensive habitat types, i.e. olive groves and vineyards. The seasonal pattern in plant productivity, which coincides with the phenology of rabbits in Mediterranean areas was only detectable in the less intensively managed habitat types. Scarce natural vegetation remnants retained the highest richness, diversity and plant cover, potentially acting as a refuge for both, plants and rabbits. Our results indicate that intensive management practices, through reducing alternative food sources for rabbits, are likely to promote conflict between hunters, farmers and conservationists in semiarid agro-ecosystems of Southern Spain. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The objectives of this study were to quantify the damage caused to vineyards by foraging rabbits in a semiarid agroecosystem in southern Spain, to identify the main factors that promote the problem, and to propose efficient management strategies. In spring 2008, rabbit damage was assessed using a browsing index on vine shoots and rabbit abundance was estimated using faecal pellet counts. The availability of alternative feeding sources was estimated, and the loss in grape production was calculated. In addition, an experiment on the effectiveness of diversionary feeding in reducing damage caused by rabbits was conducted. Rabbit damage was strongly, positively correlated with rabbit abundance, and decreased with increasing diversity of herbaceous plant species. Grapevine yield was negatively correlated with rabbit damage, which caused a 20% reduction in yield. Although diversionary feeding practices did not have a significant effect on grapevine yield, they significantly reduced rabbit damage, suggesting that food availability had a major influence on the likelihood and extent of rabbit-induced damage to vineyards. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]