More beetles to join fly fight, Redman
Author: Terry Redman
Published on: 04-November-2011
A survey of dung beetle populations in the South-West is set to examine their impact on bush fly populations.
Agriculture and Food Minister Terry Redman said the two-year study would investigate interaction between existing species and help identify the best sites to establish new dung beetle species.
The Department of Agriculture and Food (DAFWA) survey will link into research currently under way by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), which will import two new species of dung beetle into Australia.
CSIRO has agreed to make the beetles available to the department on the basis that suitable release sites be identified and the beetles are carefully managed.
Mr Redman said dung beetles were already active in Western Australia as a result of a program which ran for 28 years from 1968.
“Bush flies are native insects that have affected the lives of West Australians since the first settlement,” he said.
“Seven introduced dung beetle species remain abundant in rural regions of WA. Research has shown that the beetles provide many benefits, including improved nutrient recycling, a reduction in worms in livestock and a reduction in fly populations.
“Although proposals to import new species can take many years due to strict quarantine requirements, the CSIRO project is well advanced.
“The State Government, through DAFWA, has supported this work and has reached a funding arrangement with CSIRO to fast-track access to these beetles.”
