Here Comes the Easter... Bilby?

Happy Easter, to those of you who celebrate it!  Even many of those of you who don't probably take a nod towards the more secular-side of the holiday, perhaps by decorating Easter eggs, or eating chocolates and Peeps.  It's almost certain that rabbits are involved in this mix somewhere.

Rabbits were a part of Easter before it even was Easter - they are a symbol of the pre-Christian religious celebrations of the spring.  Why rabbits, instead of, say, badgers or hedgehogs?  Because spring is the time of rebirth, and few animals make a better poster-species for fertility than rabbits.

Of course, that fertility can be a problem, especially if you DON'T want lots of rabbits breeding everywhere... say, if you are Australia, and rabbits are an invasive species which is threatening the survival of your native wildlife by eating them out of house and home.

Photo credit: Save the Bilby Fund

Among those species that are threatened by rabbits (as well as introduced predators in the form of foxes and house cats) is the bilby, an adorable little marsupial which, coincidentally, has rabbit ears (unless we are to assume that rabbits have bilby ears).  Outside of its native Australia, the bilby is poorly known.  Inside of Australia, it's rapidly fading into history.

10 reasons Australians should celebrate bilbies, not bunnies, this Easter

In an effort to raise awareness and money for saving these little fellows, the Save the Bilby Fund has launched an ambitious PR campaign - to dethrone the Easter Bunny and replace it with the Easter Bilby.  Proceeds from each chocolate bilby go towards native species conservation efforts, as well as raising awareness about the plight of the endangered marsupials.

Does the bilby really have any chance of replacing the bunny as an icon of Easter.  No, let's be honest.  That doesn't mean this quest is quixotic, though.  Instead, it stands to benefit from possibly redirecting a portion of the vast sums of money that are sent on Easter chocolates towards conservation, while raising the profile of a little-known, little-loved species in need of help.  So far, it does seem to be gaining some traction.

Who knows what could be next.  Cadbury Platypus Cream Eggs?