How 24 rabbits from Glastonbury nearly destroyed an entire continent

He wanted a reminder of England and a few rabbits to hunt. Instead, the animals sent by his brother in Glastonbury helped unleash one of Australia's greatest environmental disasters.

Now a BBC film explores how a shipment of just 24 rabbits linked Abbey House to an invasion that devastated farmland and wildlife habitats across a continent.

The 24 rabbits that (nearly) destroyed a continent follows the animals' journey from Somerset to Australia — and the damage that followed. Released in August, the five-minute film is presented by evolutionary biologist Dr Joel Alves, whose research helped trace the invasion's origins.

At the centre of the story are Somerset-born brothers James and Thomas Austin, who travelled to Australia in 1831. James later returned to England and bought Abbey House in Glastonbury, while Thomas remained in Victoria.

Missing England, Thomas asked his brother to send rabbits, providing something familiar from home and animals to hunt. The shipment of 24 arrived in 1859, with consequences neither brother could have anticipated.

The rabbits multiplied and spread, damaging crops, vegetation and wildlife habitats. Research combining genetic evidence with historical records has traced Australia's rabbit invasion back to that Somerset shipment.

Exeter-based Preston Street Films filmed at Abbey House for the documentary. Director Chris Jones said the building offered a striking connection between Glastonbury and events thousands of miles away.

"Filming at Abbey House was a real joy," he said. "There's something special about being in a place with such a rich history, knowing that someone who lived there was connected to a story with consequences on the other side of the world. It's a fascinating Glastonbury connection that I suspect very few people know about."

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The film also explores what happened when scientists tried to bring rabbit numbers under control. Dr Alves's research examined how populations developed resistance to myxomatosis, using DNA from historical museum specimens alongside modern samples.

Produced through BBC Ideas' partnership with the University of Oxford's Social Sciences Division, the documentary brings together history, archaeology and genetics. It can be watched through the University of Oxford's film page.