Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
myxomatosis
Introduction References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Quizzes
Encyclopaedia Britannica thistle graphic to be used with a Mendel/Consumer quiz in place of a photograph.
44 Questions from Britannica’s Most Popular Health and Medicine Quizzes
Quick Facts
Formally:
infectious myxomatosis, or myxomatosis cuniculi
Related Topics:
disease
rabbit
See all related content
Britannica AI Icon
Adding us as a Preferred Source tells Google you trust our content, so our articles show up more often in your Google Search, Discover feed, and AI Overviews.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites

myxomatosis

animal pathology
Also known as: infectious myxomatosis, myxomatosis cuniculi, rabbit pox(Show More)
Written and fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
Britannica Editors
History

myxomatosis, a highly fatal infectious viral disease of rabbits. It is characterized by fever, swelling of the mucous membranes, and the presence of nodular skin tumours. The disease exists naturally in populations of certain South American rabbits of the genus Sylvilagus and has been introduced into western Europe and Australia as a means of rabbit population control.