Protecting Western Australia’s eucalypt plantations from invasive weevils
The impact of invasive eucalyptus weevils (Gonipterus spp.) on growth rates in Western Australian Eucalyptus globulus plantations is a serious impediment to sustainable hardwood production in the region.
These pests can cause between 40% and 80% defoliation to shoot tips and the upper crown, which can reduce total tree growth by up to 30%.
Since August 2022, Dr Andy Howe of the University of the Sunshine Coast has led research to identify host-matched, effective parasitoid wasp populations in the Green Triangle for release in Western Australia. The goal is to improve biological control of eucalyptus weevils.
The research is particularly important considering the invasive range of the weevils covers all Western Australian hardwood plantations, alongside increasing pressure against the use of neonicotinoids, which industry currently relies on in new and most two to three-year-old plantations.
Biological control is considered the most sustainable long-term management option, potentially saving lost production and up to $180,000 a year due to reduced pesticide applications.
This work is expected to be completed by the end of July 2024.
For more information, click here.
Evaluation of remote sensing approaches for plantation health surveillance
For as long as there has been forestry, forest managers have been committed to maintaining healthy and productive forests for a wide range of economic, social and environmental benefits.
Effective plantation health surveillance is essential to identify and diagnose damage and enable targeted management including chemical application, and strategic assessments including yield impact analysis.
A new project led by Dianne Patzel (University of South Australia) and Dr Christine Stone (NSW Dept. of Primary Industries and managed through Flinders University in collaboration with Professor David Bruce, aims to compare a range of satellite and airborne remote sensing methods with traditional forest health assessment methods. The idea is to create a cost-benefit analysis relating to plantation health surveillance.
Traditional approaches to maintaining healthy forests can be costly, time-consuming and affected by access issues. These might include annual aerial surveillance flights with a trained aerial observer combined with ground surveillance and diagnosis.
Experience in the Green Triangle area has demonstrated the value of adopting a regionally coordinated approach to surveillance, including shared costs and results, targeted monitoring across the landscape, and collaborative research activities.
Advances in technologies such as airborne and satellite remote sensing presents many new opportunities for the industry, including the ability to perform temporal analysis, undertake multiple surveys each year, and utilise the information gathered to implement more targeted on-ground diagnostics and management activities.
The research will provide recommendations on the capabilities, benefits and associated costs of several currently available satellite and airborne systems.
This project has been made possible thanks to the support of the National Institute for Forest Products Innovation (NIFPI), and funding from the Commonwealth Government and South Australian Government, as well as cash contributions from FWPA grower members.
Developing and validating rapid diagnostic protocols for exotic pests and diseases
The ongoing potential threat posed by invasive pests and diseases and a decline in technical capacity in forest biosecurity has seen a need to develop fast, reliable forest biosecurity diagnostic protocols to allow for urgent action to be taken to protect trees when required.
The team behind one current Australian biosecurity research project is working to create new species and genera-specific protocols, alongside environmental DNA (eDNA) approaches to enhance detection of target and non-target species.
The protocols will be designed to support the diagnostic laboratories handling the anticipated rise in samples from the National Forest Biosecurity Surveillance Program, as well as providing capabilities for rapid in-field diagnostics.
For more information click here.
Social Licence for tree removal to increase Success of exotic pest eradication programs
Tree removal is often the most practical and cost-effective way to eliminate high-priority exotic pests in forestry and horticulture.
Social acceptance of urban tree removal is therefore crucial for enabling effective eradication efforts.
However, social acceptance proved a significant challenge in a previous, failed Giant Pine Scale eradication program conducted in Melbourne.
A new FWPA project will gauge the current public understanding and acceptance of tree removal in urban landscapes during an eradication response. It will also provide biosecurity agencies and stakeholders with tools to help educate and gain and sustain social license for tree removal due to exotic pest incursions as necessary to protect our environment.
For more information click here.
