There's normally nothing very special about traffic islands, but a sliver of land on the side of a highway in Tasmania changes that.
Known by locals as "Bunny Island", a population of wild rabbits calls a median strip on the Bass Highway in Burnie home, and they've gained a following of fans from those who drive by.
Its location has created a safe haven for the rabbits away from predators, allowing them to thrive, according to Professor Menna Jones from the University of Tasmania's School of Biological Sciences.
"It's clearly unique in that it's on such a small bit of land, surrounded by such a busy highway, so it becomes a focus for drivers," she said.
"The rabbits are clearly not worried about predators because they are out during the day."
The island's population is made up of a combination of both brown and black rabbits, an occurrence not seen often.
"The black ones would derive, fairly recently, from a domestic population. In these sorts of situations, they can survive quite well," Professor Jones said.
"However, in the Midlands, for example, if you put a domestic rabbit out there, it sticks out, and sooner or later a wedge-tailed eagle or a Tasmanian devil is going to get it."
She said the grass on the median strip, as well as cover in the form of shrubs and trees, made it a "perfect" spot for the rabbits.
Breeding like rabbits
Rabbits have one of the fastest reproductive rates of any mammal on earth, and Professor Jones said the population in Burnie would be breeding "all the time".
"They probably interbreed but the island would have a carrying capacity — that's the maximum number of rabbits it can support," she said.
"If the numbers get higher than that, you'll get increased dispersal of young ones and you'll get increased mortality — they'll starve."
She said some of the young rabbits will make a dash across the highway, likely in the quiet hours of the early morning, in search of a new home.
"There is not enough room for them all to stay there," she said.
"Rabbits are really adaptable and they are very capable of living in urban areas."
Population not in danger
Despite describing rabbits as a "major agricultural, environmental and economic pest" in Australia, Professor Jones said Burnie's rabbits were not causing harm.
"In this situation, if people are seeing them and it makes their day, to drive past and see these wild living animals out there, I think that's absolutely wonderful," she said.
The rabbits appear to not only be largely safe from natural predators, but also from human interference as well.
A Department of State Growth spokesperson said it regularly inspects and maintains the traffic island but has no control over the rabbit population.
"The median strip in question is typically mowed 10 times a year, most recently in August," the spokesperson said.
"Our focus is to provide a safe environment for road users. The Department does not have responsibility for the management of animals or control of the wild rabbit population on this traffic island."
As the land is controlled by the state government, the Burnie City Council said it had no opinion on the rabbit population on the traffic island.
