Rabbits!

[jayrandom]

Rabbits have long been associated with bad luck on Portland; use of the name is still taboo—the creatures are often referred to as "Underground Mutton", "Long-Eared Furry Things" or just "bunnies". The origin of this superstition is obscure (there is no record of it before the 1920s) but it is believed to derive from quarry workers; they would see rabbits emerging from their burrows immediately before a rock fall and blame them for increasing the risk of dangerous, sometimes deadly, landslides. If a rabbit was seen in a quarry, the workers would pack up and go home for the day, until the safety of the area had been assured. Local fishermen too would refuse to go to sea if the word was mentioned.

Even today older Portland residents are 'offended' (sometimes for the benefit of tourists) at the mention of rabbits; this superstition came to national attention in October 2005 when a special batch of advertisement posters were made for the Wallace and Gromit film, The Curse of the Were-Rabbit. In respect of local beliefs the adverts omitted the word 'rabbit' and replaced the film's title with the phrase "Something bunny is going on".

-- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isle_of_Portland