Pest Management

After introducing the birds last growing season as a trial, Castle Rock Estate is using them again this year with hopes to grow the flock.

Australia's first prawn farm, built nearly 40 years ago, is one of three in a NSW region up for sale as the risk of another white spot disease outbreak outweighs investing in another season.

A good spring and plenty of food have increased the number of bees looking to establish new colonies, but as the varroa mite moves through the region it could drastically reduce feral bee swarms.

While online sales of potentially damaging plants are booming, biosecurity officers in NSW are working to stop the latest outbreak of plume poppy weed from spreading throughout the country. 

The European Commission has approved the use of the controversial herbicide for another decade, with a spokesperson for Australian growers backing the decision as good news for exports.

The first durians of the season are fetching more than $30 a kilogram wholesale, meaning the cockatoos are "picking the most expensive fruit in town", grower Han Shiong Siah says.

Investigators warn that the deliberate release of feral pigs will not be tolerated, pointing to their impacts on the environment as "severe".

The potential impacts of varroa mite on Australia are being realised as a feral bee die-off is predicted, potentially leading to increased production costs for farmers who relied on them for pollination.

While Australia has lost many unique species in living memory to bulldozers, climate change and bushfires, nothing has killed off living wonders quite like invasive pests and diseases.

When a South Australian facility began breeding sterile fruit flies, growers called for production to double to really impact wild fruit fly populations. So is it working, and could it work elsewhere?

First detected in Australia in the 1930s, European earwigs can affect citrus, cherries and canola – and farmers are being warned to check carefully and early for signs of infestation.

After varroa mite ruined his first hives and bushfire wrecked his second, NSW Mid North Coast beekeeper Glenn Locke has vowed he will "get going again".

A local MP whose electorate includes Kosciuszko National Park defends a recent NSW government decision to allow aerial shooting of feral horses, during a budget estimates hearing. 

Bunderra Cattle Company is fined $18,000 plus a $3,000 levy for taking cattle from an NT station to Queensland without treating the animals for ticks on three separate occasions.

Delays in erecting a 32km priority section of the NSW/ SA Wild dog fence could cause serious harm to the livestock enterprises' of many.

A conservationist says feral pig numbers have exploded after successive wet seasons in northern Victoria and western New South Wales, as a coordinator is appointed with a $13 million budget to eliminate them.

As the industry works out what's next in learning to live with the deadly parasite, search warrants have been issued as part of the federal government's investigation into the suspected illegal importation of bees infected with the pest.

Biosecurity experts are warning the aggressive, invasive weed acts like a blanket over water, dominating everything and reducing oxygen for aquatic animals.

Sheep graziers say the broken section is allowing feral animals to move freely between NSW and SA and threatening their industry, after long delays to repairs.

A Victorian hunter takes feral deer and turns them into a luxury venison product, but with deer emerging as one of the country's worst feral animal threats, experts say more must be done.

Aerial culling of wild horses is among the recommendations from a report into the damage being done by populations in alpine areas.

Federal and state agricultural ministers have agreed to further research into the potential release of a carp herpes virus into Australian waterways, but an expert says doing so risks wasting more time and money.

Australia's decision to abandon efforts to eradicate varroa mite is triggering an exodus of backyard and hobby beekeepers, with thousands already selling their bee smokers and hanging up their bee suits.

Residents in the state's north are at war with rodents invading properties, contaminating water and infesting vehicles, as cane farmers estimate they will lose more than 100,000 tonnes of crop to the pests this season.

A highly invasive cactus species is proliferating across the region, prompting the use of drone technology to identify the severity of the outbreak.