Two fact sheets developed to help mitigate potential incursions of new, high priority invasive pest species are now available to download online.
These brief guides present specific information on how to identify, report and document the black twig borer and Japanese pine sawyer beetle – two species not yet detected in Australia but considered likely to arrive in the future. Each of these pests has the potential to cause significant damage to our plantations or other important tree crops by killing their host plants.
The black twig borer fact sheet provides information on this pest, known globally to pose a threat to commercial crops including avocados, mangoes and macadamias. Because it has also been found to attack trees and shrubs native to Australia and grown overseas, such as Eucalyptus and Acacia, it is considered a potential new pest of interest to the domestic forestry industry.
The black twig borer is only small (measuring between 1.5 and 2 mm) and, as per its name, is black in colour as an adult. One telltale sign that borers have infested a tree is a pin-sized entry hole found when you snap off a dead twig.
The other pest Australian foresters are urged to look out for with the support of these fact sheets is the Japanese pine sawyer beetle, which attacks pine and some breeds of conifer trees.
The Japanese pine sawyer beetle is a larger (30 mm) and distinctive-looking pest, which has antennae, mottled black and pale grey patches, and thin orange-brown stripes on its body. Although Australia does have other species of long-horned beetles similar in size and shape to the Japanese pine sawyer beetle, none of these species attack pine trees.
“While Australia is lucky to be free of many overseas pests and diseases, biosecurity remains a key concern for the health of our environment, as well as the commercial viability of Australian primary industries,” said Jodie Mason, FWPA’s Forest Research Manager.
“The goal of these fact sheets is to create awareness so that if either of these species cross into Australia, people have a best practice guide to know how to report and document their presence.”
Co-funded by FWPA as part of a cross-industry collaboration and produced by independent R&D company Cesar Australia, the resources were developed as part of a broader research program known as ‘Boosting diagnostic capacity for plant industries.’
This research program aims to improve plant diagnostic knowledge and capacity, especially in the early detection of biosecurity threats, to better support Australian primary industries to mitigate risk.
You can download the guides online at the AUSVEG website here: https://ausveg.com.au/biosecurity-agrichemical/biosecurity/boosting-diagnostics/
