There’s a problematic cuteness-overload in one southern Florida community — bunnies are digging into yards, cutting through wiring and drawing growing ire of residents and public officials.
Sixty to 100 rabbits are hopping around the Jenada Isles neighborhood of Wilton Manors, a city a few miles north of Fort Lauderdale, according to a Wednesday statement from Wilton Manors.
The City Commission during an April 25 meeting weighed options on what to do with the rabbits that are messing up yards, slicing wiring and prompting concerns for the safety of the bunnies, drivers and bicyclists alike, in the neighborhood of about 80 residents, the city said.
Neighborhood residents reported that another resident released their pet rabbits, which naturally, led to rabbits doing what rabbits do: reproducing and “creating the current population,” the city said. It's unclear when that release happened.
During the commission’s meeting in April, the city considered a rescue operation to secure homes for the rabbits, at a cost of about $11,400. The commission also received an estimate of about $8,500 for the cost of trapping the bunnies over 12 months, the city said. During that process, the bunnies would not be killed, but instead, relocated. But the trapping plan did not include cost estimates for relocating the rabbits, the city said.
While The Associated Press reported the trapping plan would include killing the rabbits, Wilton Manors disputes that.
Ultimately, city commissioners directed the city manager to research and develop a plan for the animals.
On May 11, the city hosted a meeting about the rabbits and decided “the best course of action” was to partner with a rescue group “that would humanely recover and rehome the rabbits,” according to the statement from the city.
“Therefore, the City is continuing to assess and research rescue organizations to partner with. Our goal is to see these rabbits placed into the hands of people with a passion to provide the necessary care and love for them,” the statement said.
In another statement, Wilton Manors Police Chief Gary Blocker reiterated the city’s commitment to treating the cuddly cottontails with gentle hands.
“The safety of this rabbit population is of utmost importance to the City, and any decision to involve ourselves will be certain to see these rabbits placed into the hands of people with a passion to provide the necessary care and love for these rabbits,” he said.
The rabbits aren’t the only invasive species causing a nuisance for Floridians.
Burmese pythons have been called an “invasive apex predator” by the environmental group the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, which called for the reptiles to be removed from the area's ecosystem. Other invasive animals include the lionfish, which are killing off native species. Giant African snails are eating stucco off homes and carry human disease.