LONG BEACH, Calif.—The Easter bunnies of Long Beach are multiplying like rabbits.

Hundreds of bunnies—some of them fugitives from Easters past—lounge in the shade and hop alongside students of Long Beach City College, a small, sunny campus south of Los Angeles. They also fight bloody turf wars, burrow deep holes in the lawns, and devour thousands of dollars of landscaping.

"It's just gotten out of hand," said Tim Wootton, deputy director of facilities and a member of the school's Rabbit Population Management Task Force, or as he calls it, the Bunny Committee. The task force's task: a massive round-up of abandoned bunnies and their offspring.

The college began capturing rabbits last month to regain control. Some will be given away for adoption. Others may be shipped off to sanctuaries. The remaining bunnies will be neutered and released on campus.

At least one rabbit—a large white male nick-named Houdini for his ability to evade capture— mounted a gallant resistance for a time.