Pests

Animal pests, both vertebrates (backbone) and invertebrates (no backbone), can have an adverse impact on agriculture, the natural environment and even our lifestyle. Animal pests may be exotic animals which are introduced, either accidentally or deliberately. Native animals may also be pests in certain situations.

The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development manages pests in Western Australia through policy development, risk assessment, research and development, provision of technical advice and information, implementation of regulation, emergency response, property inspections, industry liaison, and the planning and coordination of significant species control/eradication programs.

For advice on pests search our website, the Western Australian Organism List or contact our Pest and Disease Information Service (PaDIS).

For diagnostic services, please contact our Diagnostic Laboratory Services.

Articles

  • Mites of the Tetranychidae family (commonly known as spider mites) include some important pests of economic concern to agriculture and forestry.

  • The Western Australian grain storage industry is focused on sealed storage and fumigation to achieve the federally mandated ‘nil tolerance’ for live insects in exports.

  • Vegetable weevil

    Weevils are beetles with long snouts that can damage or kill young seedlings.

  • DDLS Seed Testing and Certification is responsible for administering the industry seed potato production schemes in Western Australia.

  • In 2023, the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) is conducting more than 250 research trials across the state.

  • A Quarantine Area Notice is in place that applies restrictions to the movement of host plants produced in the Quarantine Area to other areas in the state where tomato-potato psyllid is not known to

  • Two mealybug species, the longtailed mealybug (Pseudococcus longispinus), and obscure mealybug (Pseudococcus viburni) occur in grapevines and deciduous fruit tree crops in Western

  • Citrophilus mealybug (Pseudococcus calceolariae) is a serious pest of many horticultural industries that can downgrade fruit quality and affect fruit production.

  • Citrus gall wasp (Bruchophagus fellis) is a pest of citrus trees. Discovered in the suburb of Eden Hill in 2013 it is now an established pest in Perth.

  • In Western Australia's Mediterranean-type climate, the survival of pests and diseases over summer is often critical in determining pest outbreaks and disease epidemics in broadacre crops.

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