The epidemic is already uncontrollable

1996/01/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Ekologia

In Australia the fight against rabbits is ancestral, but since November last year they fear an epidemic that extends uncontrollably. The agent is due to the virus Robbit calicivirus or, more specifically, to those who have used it without any control.

The origin of the epidemic should be at the center of the research initiated in October last year. It was then that researchers from southern Australia began to seek solutions to the problem of rabbit overpopulation. Rabbit calicivirus began to be used in the laboratory, but within a few days the virus passed the laboratory safety measures and began to spread throughout Australia. According to the latest data, the virus was transported by an insect and distributed throughout the environment.

Whatever the reason for its spread, avoiding the epidemic caused by the virus will not be an easy task. To date, researchers have not found the way against the virus and while still free will kill hundreds of rabbits. Someone might think that their initial purpose has been fulfilled and, although to some extent, researchers complain about the possible incidence of the epidemic in other animals.