A weevil smaller than a grain of rice has been released into waterways infested with cabomba weed, a South American plant that has been wreaking havoc in several states and territories.
abc.net.au/news/cabomba-weevil-unleashed-on-weed-infesting-australian-waterways/102482954A tiny weevil is offering hope in an environmental war against a costly weed that chokes waterways, entangles boats and swimmers, impacts platypus populations and significantly adds to taxpayers' costs of treating drinking water.
"Little fragments of it can easily get stuck in people's boats and kayaks and potentially be transferred to new dams so that's a huge risk for us."Sinking its roots into the depths of dams and slow-moving fresh waterways, the South American plant sends stems of feathery, fan-shaped leaves up to seven metres toward the surface.CSIRO scientist Kumaran Nagalingam said platypus numbers were found to be lower in cabomba-infested creeks in northern Queensland.
While the adults feed on the plant, the larvae cause the most damage by tunnelling through its stems and breaking them down. "The famous cane toad case happened way back when there were very few checks and balances in place, whereas this is a very extensive process — several years of research, several high-level committees overseeing the results to ensure that the risk is immeasurably low," he said.A cabomba weevil breeding centre has been established at Lake Kurwongba.
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