"They Know Not What They Do" — on William Rodier and his Mission to Exterminate Rabbits and other Vertebrate Pests

Abstract

William Rodier (1859–1936) became well known throughout much of southeastern Australia during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, mainly through the vigour with which he expressed his contentious views on how best to control certain vertebrate pests. Much of his 'plan', particularly in regard to rabbits, was based on his experience as a pastoralist in western New South Wales. In this article, we examine what is known about Rodier's family background, his occupations, preoccupations, and particularly, the effectiveness of his endeavours to convince a largely sceptical public as to the wisdom and practicality of his method for vertebrate pest control. Some of the circulars and flyers printed by Rodier are also reproduced for illustrative purposes. These were designed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the Rodier Method, especially for controlling the rabbit, perceived by him to be the most serious threat then facing landholders in Australia. Rodier's activities are appraised in light of the relationship then existing between community-based science and more orthodox, academically-based science in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Finally, this relationship is further explored in an historical context by examining the importance attached to local, informal knowledge in contemporary ecological research where landholder collaboration is now often regarded as an integral component.