Microhabitat selection of the European rabbit on La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain

Little information exists regarding habitat selection on oceanic islands for the introduced European rabbitOryctolagus cuniculus Linnaeus, 1758. I employed the sharp altitude gradient of one of the Canary Islands, La Palma, to analyze factors relating to rabbit abundance. I used pellet counts to assess rabbit abundance in relation to microhabitat variables during June and July of 1999 and 2001. Number of rabbits varied with grass cover in the different biotopes for both years. They were particularly abundant in biotopes at low elevation and with rich grass cover. Rabbits were more numerous in 2001 than in 1999, and selected shrub protection in places with high levels of grass cover. Areas with vegetation transformed by humans were particularly suitable for wild rabbits, in contrast to less disturbed island biotopes. Rabbit abundance was usually associated with rich grass cover, which might be a limiting factor on La Palma.