Rabbits In Australia Research Articles

Performance of purebred and crossbred rabbits in Australia: doe reproductive and pre-weaning litter traits

Data from a rabbit breeding experiment were analysed to compare the doe reproductive and pre-weaning litter performance of 3 breeds of rabbits, namely New Zealand White (N), Californian (C), and Flemish Giant (F), and their crosses CN (C × N) and FN (F × N). The foundation stock of 152 rabbits was collected from 26 different sources in New South Wales, Australia. Data on reproductive traits, doe age at first successful mating (DA), doe weight at first successful mating (DW) arising from 104 does, conception rate (CR) from 808 matings, and kindling interval (KI) from 325 records of 119 does were analysed. Overall means for reproductive traits DA, DW, CR, and KI were 21 weeks, 3.6 kg, 0.75, and 7.4 weeks, respectively. DA, CR, and KI did not differ significantly among different breeds and their crosses. DW of C does was found to be significantly lighter than all other breed crosses in the study. Month–year of mating significantly affected DA, DW, and CR (P < 0.01), and as the parity number increased, there was a significant (P < 0.01) decrease in KI. As age of the doe at mating increased there was a significant increase in DW (P < 0.01), CR (P < 0.05), and KI (P < 0.01). Data from 436 litters of 157 does were included in the analysis of pre-weaning litter traits. The overall means for the pre-weaning litter traits were: number born per litter (NB, 8.1), number born alive per litter (NBA, 6.9), number weaned per litter (NW, 3.3), total litter birth weight (TLBW, 453.7 g), live litter birth weight (LLBW, 397.1 g), litter weaning weight (LWW, 2.8 kg), and average birth weight of kits per litter (ABW, 58.1 g). Doe breed significantly affected NW (P < 0.05), TLBW (P <�0.01), LLBW (P < 0.05), LWW, and ABW (P < 0.01). N does and crossbred does (CN and FN) performed better than purebred F and C does for NW and LWW. A significant heterosis of 41.9% and 40.8% was observed in CN does for traits NW and LWW, respectively. ABW of F does was significantly higher than that of all other breed crosses in the study. Buck breed did not have any significant effect on any of the pre-weaning litter traits under study. Parity significantly affected NW (P < 0.05), TLBW (P < 0.01), LLBW (P < 0.05), and ABW (P < 0.01). First parity does produced litters with significantly lighter birth weights. The month–year of birth effect was significant for NW, LWW (P < 0.01), and ABW (P < 0.05).�The coefficients of variation for the doe reproductive traits and pre-weaning litter traits ranged between 12.1 and 59.5% and 16.1 and 93.3%, respectively. High phenotypic variances and coefficients of variation observed for traits NW and LWW indicate that good response could be realised through selection. Repeatability estimates for reproductive traits CR and KI were very low. Low to moderate repeatability estimates in the range 0.17–0.25 were observed for pre-weaning litter traits. Significant positive phenotypic correlations were observed between litter size and litter weight traits (0.30–0.97). A significant negative correlation was observed between ABW and NB (–0.56) and NBA (–0.36).

Semiochemicals and social signaling in the wild European rabbit in Australia: II. Variations in chemical composition of chin gland secretion across sampling sites.

The volatile components of the chin gland secretion of the wild European rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.), were investigated with the use of gas chromatography. Studies of the chemical nature of this secretion by previous workers demonstrated that it was important in the maintenance of social structure in this species. This study identified 34 different volatile components that consist primarily of aromatic and aliphatic hydrocarbons. Especially common are a series of alkyl-substituted benzene derivatives that provide most of the compound diversity in the secretion. Samples of chin gland secretion collected from animals at three different geographical locations, separated by more than 100 km, showed significant differences in composition. This work suggests that variation among populations needs to be considered when undertaking semiochemical research. Alternate nonparametric methods are also used for the analysis of chromatographic data.

Social structures, genetic structures and dispersal strategies in Australian rabbit ( Oryctolagus cuniculus ) populations

In this study, the pattern of movement of young male and female rabbits and the genetic structures present in adult male and female populations in four habitats was examined. The level of philopatry in young animals was found to vary between 18–90% for males and 32–95% for females in different populations. It was skewed, with more males dispersing than females in some but not all populations. Analysis of allozyme data using spatial autocorrelation showed that adult females from the same social group, unlike males, were significantly related in four of the five populations studied. Changes in genetic structure and rate of dispersal were measured before and during the recovery of a population that was artificially reduced in size. There were changes in the rate and distance of dispersal with density and sex. Subadults of both sexes moved further in the first year post crash (low density) than in the following years. While the level of dispersal for females was lower than that of the males for the first 3 years, thereafter (high density) both sexes showed similar, low levels of dispersal (20%). The density at which young animals switch behaviour between dispersal and philopatry differed for males and females. The level of genetic structuring in adult females was high in the precrash population, reduced in the first year post crash and undetectable in the second year. Dispersal behaviour of rabbits both affects the genetic structure of the population and changes with conditions. Over a wide range of levels of philopatry, genetic structuring is present in the adult female , but not the male population. Consequently, though genetic structuring is present, it does not lead to inbreeding. More long-distance movements are found in low-density populations, even though vacant warrens are available near birth warrens. The distances moved decreased as density increased. Calculation of the effective population size (Ne) shows that changes in dispersal distance offset changes in density, so that Ne remains constant.

The Australian Rabbit Calicivirus Disease Program: a story about technoscience and culture.

The paper discusses the Australian Rabbit Calicivirus Disease (RCD) Program, an attempt at the biological control of wild rabbits, as an example of how technoscience in 'Mode-2 society' works. My aim is to illuminate the variety of, and the connections between, the diverse activities that the technoscientific actors engage in. The RCD Program brought a new entity into Australia; it was pursued by a network of actors across institutional boundaries, and it produced a public image linked to widely accepted cultural knowledge. I argue that the research articulating 'rabbit calicivirus' as a biological control agent, the extent of the supporting network and the alignment of the Program with cultural narratives about rabbits, were three aspects of the same process, and equally important. However, it also makes sense to understand each aspect in terms of both the audience addressed, and the temporal succession: hence, they can be distinguished as distinct aspects. Detailed study of projects like the RCD Program is necessary to further our understanding of the dynamics of technoscience in contemporary culture.

Determination of the sodium monofluoroacetate in serum by gas chromatography

Sodium monofluoroacetate (NAFAc) has been widely used for vertebrate pest control, such as rabbits in Australia. However, NAFAc is extremely toxic to all vertebrates and its use is restricted. Although this compound is stringently restricted, the occurrence of accidental and homicidal poisoning is na ever-present possibility.

The emergence of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus: will a non-pathogenic strain protect the UK?

Rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus emerged in China in 1984, and has killed hundreds of millions of wild rabbits in Australia and Europe. In the UK there appears to be an endemic non-pathogenic strain, with high levels of seroprevalence being recorded, in the absence of associated mortality. Using a seasonal, age-structured model we examine the hypothesis that differences in rabbit population demography differentially affect the basic reproductive rates (R(0)) of the pathogenic and non-pathogenic strains, leading to each dominating in some populations and not others. The strain with the higher R(0) excluded the other, with the dynamics depending upon the ratio of the two R(0) values. When the non-pathogenic strain dominated, the pathogenic strain caused only transient mortality, although this could be significant when the two R(0) values were similar. When the pathogenic strain dominated, repeated epidemics led to host eradication. Seroprevalence data suggest that the non-pathogenic strain may be protecting some, but not all UK populations, with half being 'at risk' from invasion by the pathogenic strain and a fifth prone to significant transient mortality. We identify key questions for empirical research to test this prediction.

Coevolution of Host and Virus: Cellular Localization of Virus in Myxoma Virus Infection of Resistant and Susceptible European Rabbits

The coevolution of myxoma virus and the wild European rabbit in Australia and the development of resistance to myxomatosis in wild rabbits have been well described. However, the mechanism of resistance to myxomatosis in wild rabbits is not understood. To determine the basis of resistance, the pathogenesis of the virulent standard laboratory strain (SLS) and the attenuated Uriarra (Ur) strain of myxoma virus were examined in Australian wild rabbits that have been naturally selected in the field for resistance to myxomatosis and in laboratory rabbits which have never been selected for resistance. Virus was localized in tissue sections by immunofluorescence. In all cases virus antigen was initally present in dendritic cells of the dermis before localizing predominantly to the epidermis by Day 6. Antigen-containing cells were detected in the lymph nodes by 24 h after inoculation. Virus replication occurred predominantly in T lymphocytes of the paracortex but SLS also replicated in germinal centers. SLS replication induced loss of most lymphocytes from the lymph nodes of susceptible rabbits. Apoptosis of lymphocytes within the lymph nodes was a major feature of all infections. These apoptotic cells did not contain detectable viral antigen but were often adjacent to infected cells. Ongoing apoptosis of lymphocytes within lymph nodes was also a feature of the recovery phase when very few or no virus-infected cells could be detected. Differences between virulent and attenuated viruses in the wild and laboratory rabbits were predominantly in the degree of tissue pathology in the draining lymph node and distal lymph node and in the type of inflammatory responses, particularly in the skin. SLS infection of laboratory rabbits was associated with a very mild inflammatory response, often distant from the site of virus replication and comprised predominantly of neutrophils. In contrast, Ur-infected rabbits and SLS-infected wild rabbits had an intense inflammatory response adjacent to the site of virus replication and this was comprised predominantly of mononuclear cells. Both the initial infection of dendritic cells and the ongoing destruction of lymphocytes provide obvious mechanisms for the suppression of the immune response by myxoma virus.

BOOK REVIEWS

Australian Veterinary JournalVolume 78, Issue 1 p. 31-31 BOOK REVIEWS First published: 10 March 2008 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-0813.2000.tb10353.xAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Abstract Book reviewed in this article: The Ostrich - Biology, Production and Health. Edited by Deeming DC Tooth and Nail, The Story of the Rabbit in Australia, B Coman, Text Publishing, Melbourne The Economics of Animal Disease Control, OIE Scientific and Technical Review Volume78, Issue1January 2000Pages 31-31 RelatedInformation

Sequence analysis of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) in Australia: alterations after its release.

Liver samples from rabbits killed by RHDV, collected from five States in Australia in 1996 and 1997 were analysed by RT-PCR. A 398 bp fragment of the capsid protein (VP60) gene was amplified by PCR and directly sequenced. The alignment of the nucleotide and amino acid sequences and their comparison with the original strain of the virus released in Australia indicated genetic changes after two years have been small with 98.2% to 100% identity. The constructed phylogenetic tree suggests slight differences in nucleotide substitutions in various States but there is no clear evidence of clustering of sequences according to their geographic origin. In practical terms, sequencing of viral RNA provides a means of testing the efficacy of further releases and subsequent spread of the virus if such a strategy is employed as a means of enhancing RHD as a biological control of the wild rabbit in Australia.

Viral haemorrhagic disease of rabbits and human health.

Viral haemorrhagic disease of rabbits (VHD), a potential biological control for wild rabbits in Australia and New Zealand, escaped from quarantined field trials on Wardang Island and spread to the mainland of Australia in October 1995. This study looked for any evidence of infection or illness in people occupationally exposed to the virus. Two hundred and sixty-nine people were interviewed and 259 blood samples were collected. Exposures to VHD-infected rabbits ranged from nil to very high. No VHD antibodies were detected in any of the 259 sera when tested by VHD competitive enzyme immunoassay, which had been validated with 1013 VHDV-specific antibody negative sera. A questionnaire designed to elicit symptoms of disease in a range of organ systems found no significant differences between illness in those exposed and those not exposed to VHD, nor could an association be found between exposure and subsequent episodes of illness. The findings are consistent with the view that exposure to VHD is not associated with infection or disease in humans.

Foxes, rabbits, alternative prey and rabbit calicivirus disease: consequences of a new biological control agent for an outbreaking species in Australia

1. Rabbit calicivirus disease (RCD; also known as rabbit haemorrhagic disease) has been introduced recently as a biocontrol agent for rabbits in Australia. The consequences for fox populations that use rabbits as primary prey, for populations of alternative native prey, and for pastures, were examined using a model for rabbit‐ and fox‐prone areas of semi‐arid southern Australia. 2. Existing data were used to quantify the interactions of foxes, rabbits and pasture. A generic model for predation on native herbivores was constructed by modifying the density‐dependent (Type III) functional response of foxes to rabbits to a depensatory (Type II) response that is appropriate for alternative prey. Similar dependence on pasture biomass was assumed for the dynamics of both rabbits and alternative prey in order to identify clearly the consequences of differing predation. In the absence of quantitative data for Australian conditions, the epidemiology of RCD was simulated empirically to mimic a range of potential patterns of occurrence. 3. For semi‐arid Australia the model predicts that as the frequency and intensity of RCD epizootics increases: (i) the mean abundance of rabbits will decline, as will the frequency of eruptions of rabbits; (ii) there may be little increase in mean pasture biomass and a small decrease in periods of very low pasture biomass when competition between herbivores is most intense; (iii) the mean abundance of foxes will decline; (iv) there will be a reduced frequency of occasions when rabbit density is low but fox density is high due to a lag in the response of predator populations; and (v) there is potential for an increase in the mean abundance of alternative prey and in the proportion of time their density exceeds a threshold comparable to that currently required for eruptions of rabbits.

Field evidence for mechanical transmission of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) by flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) among wild rabbits in Australia

Field collected flies were screened for the presence of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) by applying reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) in which primers specific to the capsid protein of the virus were used. The virus was detected in flies from locations where rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHD) was reported and also soon after the release of RHDV in a `clean' area. Oral and/or anal excretions of flies (flyspots) were found to contain viable virus and oral inoculation of rabbits revealed that a single flyspot was able to cause RHD. We conclude that flyspots are a major potential source of the virus for oral or conjunctival transmission of the virus to rabbits.

Rabbit calicivirus: Update on a new biological control for pest rabbits in Australia

Rabbit calicivirus disease (RCD), also known as rabbit haemorrhagic disease, is being used to control wild rabbits in Australia. Deliberate release of RCD followed extensive non-target animal and human testing and consideration of some 472 submissions. A national monitoring and surveillance program is in place to quantify the impact of RCD on rabbits, rabbit damage, predators, competitors, and ecosystems. Preliminary data suggest wide spatial variation in RCD impact, from no observable effect to >90% mortality and marked response in competitors and vegetation. This paper provides an overview of rabbit impact in Australia, details of the considerations and testing that preceded a decision to release, and results of impact studies to date.

Microsporidia (Encephalitozoon cuniculi) in wild rabbits in Australia.

To determine the prevalence of infection with Encephalitozoon cuniculi in wild rabbit populations in Western Australia, and to isolate the organism from seropositive rabbits. Serological screening of wild and clinically affected domestic rabbit populations. Eighty-one wild rabbits from south-western Western Australia and 29 laboratory rabbits. Indirect immunofluorescence antibody technique and in-vitro amplification of parasite isolates in fibroblast cultures. Of the 81 wild rabbits and 29 laboratory rabbits, 20 and 22 respectively, had antibodies to E cuniculi. E cuniculi from the urine of one seropositive laboratory rabbit and from brain and kidney tissues of eight and five seropositive laboratory and wild rabbits respectively were isolated in fibroblast cultures. E cuniculi infection has been shown for the first time to be prevalent in wild rabbits in Australia. Techniques have been developed for the isolation and culture of the causative agent. Comparative studies can now be undertaken to determine risk factors for clinical disease in domestic rabbits and the relationship among E cuniculi isolates from wild and domestic rabbits.

Rabbit haemorrhagic disease: the new scourge of Oryctolagus cuniculus.

A new, widespread and important disease of rabbits, rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHD), is concisely reviewed and discussed. RHD is an acute, infectious condition of adult rabbits and morbidity and mortality, after a relatively short incubation period, can be very high. The disease appears typically as a necrotizing hepatitis with associated haemorrhaging, and death occurs as a result of generalized organ dysfunction. RHD is caused by a calicivirus, antigenically related to a similar virus found in brown hares but distinct from other known caliciviruses, and is spread to susceptible rabbits by a number of routes and vectors. The disease is easily identified and can be effectively controlled in commercial and domestic rabbit populations by slaughter and vaccination regimes. The occurrence of pre-existing cross-reacting antibody in a proportion of rabbits unchallenged by the disease implies the presence of non-pathogenic strains of the virus. This antibody protects against disease on subsequent exposure to RHD. Uniquely, pre-existing antibody does not occur in rabbits in Australia where, after accidental release, the virus is currently spreading rapidly.

Development and use of virus-vectored immunocontraception.

Virus-vectored immunocontraception (VVIC) is perceived to present biological risks, real or baseless, which create social and political constraints to deploying VVIC for managing vertebrate pests. Developing and deploying VVIC must be justified and address biological, social and political risks. Future needs for pest management will influence deployment of VVIC. Projections of human society and pest impact on agriculture and conservation suggest increasing need for cost-beneficial strategies. Best strategies are likely to integrate various methods, possibly including forms of VVIC. Processes identifying future pest impacts and roles for VVIC are shown using the rabbit in Australia. Present research developing VVIC aims to test physiological feasibility, to develop it for specific pests, and address aspects of ecological feasibility. Minimizing biological risks through choosing species-specific antigens and, if possible, viral vectors, is central and overseen by regulatory authorities. International collaborators study related valued species to develop protective strategies. Excellent science can withstand legal or public challenge to safe and cost-beneficial VVIC if aided by information needed by the public exposed to media distortion of scientific debate, complex argument and concepts of probability and risk. Sound science needs support from strategies for public processes to enable cost-beneficial management of vertebrate pests.

The European Rabbit: The History and Biology of a Successful Colonizer.

Introduction 1. Taxonomy and origins 2. World distribution 3. The rabbit in continental Europe 4. The rabbit in Britain 5. The rabbit in Australia 6. The rabbit in New Zealand 7. Myxomatosis Index

Testing predator - prey theory by studying fluctuating populations of small mammals.

Fluctuating populations of small mammals provide an excellent opportunity to study the functional and numerical responses of predators because of the wide range in prey density that occurs. I reinterpret data from six studies that have examined the role of predation in the population dynamics of voles in California, southern Sweden and western Finland, of snowshoe hares in northern Canada, and of house mice and rabbits in Australia. Most studies have measured functional responses by relying on changes in diet as reflected by scat or stomach contents. These methods are probably biased toward showing predator satiation. Contrary to previous conclusions I find that there is little evidence for non-linear (Type 111) functional-response curves or predator satiation at high prey densities. Recent studies indicate that the functional and numerical responses of predators can be rapid and strong enough to initiate cyclic declines, dampen fluctuations, or even cause stable numbers. The exception to this appears to be the irruptions of mice and rabbits in Australia. I propose a general explanation for the role of predation whereby the effect of predation is largely dependent on the entire prey community. When potentially cyclic prey are a small component of the overall prey biomass, generalist predators are able to prevent fluctuations by strong functional or numerical responses. As the prey community becomes dominated by a few species that fluctuate, limit cycles predominate. Limit cycles turn into irruptive population dynamics when seasonal prey reproduction is eliminated because of extended periods of vegetation growth (vegetation flushes following drought). In the future we must test assumptions underlying the way we study predation by telemetric monitoring of prey mortality and by experimentally manipulating predation.

The medieval cookbook (review)

118 Reviews Black, Maggie, The medieval cookbook, London, British Museum Press, 1992; cloth; pp. 143; 30 colour and 12 black and white photographs; 35 line illustrations; R.R.P. AUSS49.95 [distributed in Australia by Thames & Hudson]. Many readers of Parergon will have been approached by colleagues who expect them, as the resident medieval/Renaissance 'specialists', to design a medieval banquet for a conference dinner or a special occasion. They will welcome this beautiful, small-format coffee-table volume, illustrated with reproductions from manuscripts, printed books, panels and frescoes, and designed to tempt the eye and the palate. Handsomely printed in Italy for the British Museum Press, Maggie Black's Medieval cookbook, contains recipes assembled from a range of published sources, and set in context with a judicious selection of food and eating descriptions from contemporary writers. The recipes derive for the most part from French and English sources after 1066. Each recipe is transcribed in the original language, and followed by a list of modern equivalents or substitutes for the ingredients, and instructions for preparation in the m o d e m kitchen. Some of the recipes look mouth-watering. The Iowtes (leeks) of almaund mylke took m y fancy, so I procured the necessary ingredients and set to work. Take erbes; boile hem, hewe hem, and grynde hem small. Take almaundus iblaunched; grynde hem and drawe hem vp with water. Set hem on the fire and seeth the iowtes with the milke, and cast thereon sugur & salt, & seme i t forth. The soup is a 'rich dark green' when prepared with 900g. of winter leaves of English spinach, leeks, fresh herbs and so on. Since it is in the section, Life in the cloister, and is suggested for Lent, I should have expected something spartan. I did not expect anything quite so tasteless. Perhaps we , should always assume that the 'water' used to make the almond milk is good hot stock. The soup certainly tasted better after stock was added. Other recipes have been modified almost beyond recognition. Sweetsour spiced rabbit reads in the original: Egurdouce. Take connynges or kydde and smite hem on peecys rawe, and fry hem in white grece. Take raysouns of coraunce and fry hem. Take oynouns, perboile him and hewe hem small and fry hem. Take rede wine and a lytel vynegur, sugar, with powdour of peper, of gynger, of canel, salt; and cast therto, and lat it seeth with a gode quantite of white grece; & seme it forth. Reviews 119 Black does not share therecipe'senthusiasm for 'white grece', presumably because her game butcher provides her with fat, juicy rabbits. Lashings of oil or dripping will, however, compensate for the dryness of the wild Australian rabbit, and the spices here provide its exquisite sour-sweet flavour. Was Anglo-French medieval cuisine delicious enough to bear this kind of effort in hewing and smiting, boyling and streyningl Has the presence in our larders of garlic, tomatoes, and potatoes spoilt our palates? I looked at Emilio Faccioli's unsurpassed volume, L'arte della cucina in Italia: libri di ricette e trattati sulla civilta della tavola dal XIV al XIX secolo (Turin, 19 to see if there was a great difference. Thefifteenth-centuryEnglishrecipefor losyns differs from the fourteenth-century Tuscan recipe for lasagne only in the specification that poudre douce (a mixture of mace and cardamom or cinnamon with white pepper) should be added. The Italian recipes are distinguished, however, by a wondrous range of ingredients, farricherand more varied and appetising, and corresponding more closely to the range of ingredients available in m o d e m markets. Maggie Black's Medieval cookbook is part of a very successful worldwide trend in museum marketing, namely quality reproductions of museum holdings, in this case of medieval texts and illustrations, which are made available through outlets far beyond the original museum. While it may not supersede Constance B. Hieatt and Sharon Butler's very plain Pleyn delit: medieval cookery for modern cooks, with aU its menu advice for conference dinner organizers, this is certainly a more beautiful book, created to please the eye and the mind, even if the palate was less impressed. Nerida Newbigin Department of Italian University of...

Minaret: symbol of Islam (review)

Reviews 119 Black does not share therecipe'senthusiasm for 'white grece', presumably because her game butcher provides her with fat, juicy rabbits. Lashings of oil or dripping will, however, compensate for the dryness of the wild Australian rabbit, and the spices here provide its exquisite sour-sweet flavour. Was Anglo-French medieval cuisine delicious enough to bear this kind of effort in hewing and smiting, boyling and streyningl Has the presence in our larders of garlic, tomatoes, and potatoes spoilt our palates? I looked at Emilio Faccioli's unsurpassed volume, L'arte della cucina in Italia: libri di ricette e trattati sulla civilta della tavola dal XIV al XIX secolo (Turin, 19 to see if there was a great difference. Thefifteenth-centuryEnglishrecipefor losyns differs from the fourteenth-century Tuscan recipe for lasagne only in the specification that poudre douce (a mixture of mace and cardamom or cinnamon with white pepper) should be added. The Italian recipes are distinguished, however, by a wondrous range of ingredients, farricherand more varied and appetising, and corresponding more closely to the range of ingredients available in m o d e m markets. Maggie Black's Medieval cookbook is part of a very successful worldwide trend in museum marketing, namely quality reproductions of museum holdings, in this case of medieval texts and illustrations, which are made available through outlets far beyond the original museum. While it may not supersede Constance B. Hieatt and Sharon Butler's very plain Pleyn delit: medieval cookery for modern cooks, with aU its menu advice for conference dinner organizers, this is certainly a more beautiful book, created to please the eye and the mind, even if the palate was less impressed. Nerida Newbigin Department of Italian University of Sydney Bloom, Jonathan, Minaret: symbol of Islam (Oxford studies in Islamic art, VII), Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1989; pp. 216; 133 figures; R.R.P. AUS$130.00. This study sets out to ask when, where, why, and how minaret towers became attached to mosques and eventuaUy came to be regarded by Muslims and non-Muslims alike as a symbol of Islam. It also claims to correct the received view concerning the history of the minaret and to explain it in terms of the culture that produced it rather than in external terms. While 120 Reviews keeping a broad historical and spatial perspective, the book focuses on the first six centuries or so of Islamic history, mostly in the central lands of Islam. Edward Said, author of Orientalism, has reminded us of the significant distinction between 'origins' and 'beginnings' in the context of literary creativity (Said, Beginnings: intention & method, Columbia, 1975, 1985). Such a distinction is particularly valuable for cultural historians. While not referring to Said, Bloom certainly sees the difference between the origins of the call to prayer (adhan) as an integral part of Islamic liturgy at the time of the Prophet and the somewhat later beginnings of the minaret (manara) as an architectural feature of the mosque. His combined use of literary, epigraphic, archaeological, and monumental evidence is to be commended. However, his lengthy discussion of etymology leads to unnecessary digressions and confusion. For example, the assertion that the Arabic term manara (whence English minaret) originally signified 'a place offire'is misleading; the reference to Zoroastrianfireis irrelevant. While accepting his conclusion that the minaret was not originally a necessary element of mosque architecture, his argument that the first minarets were begun in the late second, rather than thefirstIslamic century, in 'Abbasid Iraq rather than Umayyad Syria is less convincing. His apparent concern to disprove the connection between adhan and early mosque towers may have led the author to minimize the importance of mi'dhana (from adhan), as the more usual Arabic term for a mosque tower. This is despite evidence that the term and the tower were both in use, in connection with the calltoprayer, before the mid-eighth century A.D. The author seems to blame the supposed 'inadequacy of the Arabic historical dictionary' for the apparent misunderstanding by Western Orientalists of the history of the minaret. Although true for the early m o d e m period, such criticism of Arabic lexicography is actually invalid for the period with...