Pests and Weeds

The most important pests threatening the Mareeba Shire Council are Tobacco Weed, Giant Rats Tail Grass, and Wild Dogs. Feral Deer are also causing problems in the Wet Tropics area.

Useful resources include:

• Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry – Weed Fact Sheets
• Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry – Pest Fact Sheets
• Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry – Pest Control Methods
• Wet Tropics Management Authority – Weed Pocket Guide
• Weedbusters Australia – About Weedbusters

The National Four Tropical Weed Eradication Program (NFTWEP) commenced in 2002 and targets five highly invasive tropical weed species: Limnocharis flava, Miconia calvescens, Miconia nervosa, Miconia racemosa and Mikania micrantha.

Between July 1st 2016 and June 30 2017 the program met all surveillance targets with field teams completing 6,500 hectares, mostly in rugged terrain and dense rainforest. The program has continued to attract additional stakeholder support, with $384,000 of in-kind resources provided for operations, community engagement and research. A summary of progress for Mareeba Shire Council can be downloaded here

Through the National Grow Me Instead program, Nursery & Garden Industry Australia is taking a significant step in tackling one of the nation’s most serious environment problems – the spread of weeds.

As part of the program, a Grow Me Instead booklet has been developed for each state/territory which contains a list of plants that were formerly grown and sold to gardeners and have since ‘jumped the garden fence’ and become invasive in the natural environment. You can access the information here.

Think before planting trees under or around powerlines.

Information on Think Smart, Plant Smart – Trees and Powerlines Don’t Mix can be found here.

A combination of trapping, fencing and poison baiting is used in conjunction with consideration of dingo/wild dog behaviour for effective management of wild dogs in the region.

Sodium Fluoroacetate (1080) can only be handled by licensed operators and cannot be used in urban areas.

Council provides a baiting service to rural areas within the region where land holders provide a cooperative approach to management of wild dogs.

To report sightings of wild dogs or to find out more information please contact Council.

Biosecurity Queensland is undertaking regular surveillance and treatment for electric ants, and asks the public to be on the lookout for tiny ants with painful stings.

The ants favour hiding under debris, stones, leaf litter and rotten trees and limbs rather than establishing distinct nests. They are about 1-1.5mm long and are golden brown in colour.

The ants can inflict a painful sting and inject venom that can cause painful itchiness, persistent pimples and occasionally a severe allergic reaction. They are also known to sting the eyes of pets and cause blindness.

Please report any suspicious ants to Biosecurity Queensland on 13 25 23.