Effect of storage conditions on dispersal and short‐term survival of translocated wild rabbits Oryctolagus cuniculus

Restocking is a widespread management practice used to support wild populations of European rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus which are jeopardised by habitat loss and disease outbreaks. However, rabbits are known to experience a high mortality just after release, which might be due to the handling stress induced by translocation, and particularly to storage condition between capture and release. In our study, we tested two soft treatments of storage in boxes, where rabbits were stored either alone or in groups of four or five, and we assessed both survival rates and maximum dispersal distances by radio‐tracking 43 individuals during eight weeks after release. We also recorded data about the survival at the time of release for 11 other rabbits that either died before release or were not radio‐equipped. Our study involved two similar experimental releases in 2001 and 2002 in distinct nearby study areas to assess the effect of storage condition. Rabbits were released in two subsequent batches at a few days interval. Overall cumulated survival over the first 10 days after capture was 61%, and 96% during the subsequent 46 days. There was no clear overall effect of the storage method used on early survival: all individuals stored in groups survived in the second experiment, but not in the first experiment, whereas early mortality was equal for individually stored rabbits in both experiments. Otherwise, there was no effect of sex and batch on survival. Maximum dispersal distances from the release sites ranged within 20–280 m, except for two rabbits that moved 1.1–1.4 km away. Dispersal after release depended on both experiment and batch, but neither on sex nor on storage condition. It is not possible to conclude from our results that storage condition is a critical factor determining release success in wild rabbit, at least not the soft treatments that we tested.