Improved understanding of the damage, ecology, and management of mirids and stinkbugs in Bollgard II

In recent years mirids and stinkbugs have emerged as important sucking pests in cotton. While stinkbugs are causing damage to bolls, mirids are causing damage to seedlings, squares and bolls. With the increasing adoption of Bollgard II and IPM approaches the use of broad-spectrum chemicals to kill Helicoverpa has been reduced and as a result mirids and stinkbugs are building to levels causing damage to bolls later in crop growth stages. Studies on stinkbugs by Dr Moazzem Khan revealed that green vegetable bug (GVB) caused significant boll damage and yield loss. A preliminary study by Dr Khan on mirids revealed that high mirid numbers at later growth stages also caused significant boll damage and that damage caused by mirids and GVB were similar. Mirids and stinkbugs therefore demand greater attention in order to minimise losses caused by these pests and to develop IPM strategies against these pests to enhance gains in IPM that have been made with Bt-transgenic cotton. Progress in this area of research will maintain sustainability and profitability of the Australian cotton industry. Mirid damage at early growth stages of cotton (up to squaring stage) has been studied in detail by Dr Khan. He found that all ages of mirids cause damage to young plants and damage by mirid nymphs is cumulative. Maximum damage occurs when the insect reaches the 4th and 5th nymphal stages. He also found that mirid feeding causes shedding of small and medium squares, and damaged large squares develop as ‘parrot beak’ bolls. Detailed studies at the boll stage, such as which stage of mirids is most damaging or which age boll is most vulnerable to feeding, is lacking. This information is a prerequisite to developing an IPM strategy for the pest in later crop growth stages. Understanding population change of the pest over time in relation to crop development is an important aspect for developing management strategies for the pest which is lacking for mirids in BollgardII. Predators and parasitoids are integral components of any IPM system and play an important part in regulating pest populations. Some generalist predators such as ants, spiders, damsel bugs and assassin bugs are known to predate on mirids. Nothing is known about parasitoids of mirids. Since green mirid (GM), Creontiades dilutus, is indigenous to Australia it is likely that we have one or more parasitoids of this mirid in Australia, but that possibility has not been investigated yet. The impact of the GVB adult parasitoid, Trichopoda giacomelli, has been studied by Dr Khan who found that the fly is established in the released areas and continues to spread. However, to get wider and greater impact, the fly should be released in new locations across the valleys. The insecticides registered for mirids and stinkbugs are mostly non-selective and are extremely disruptive to a wide range of beneficial insects. Use of these insecticides at stage I and II will minimise the impact of existing IPM programs. Therefore less disruptive control tactics including soft chemicals for mirids and stinkbugs are necessary. As with soft chemicals, salt mixtures, biopesticides based on fungal pathogens and attractants based on plant volatiles may be useful tools in managing mirids and stinkbugs with less or no disruption. Dr Khan has investigated salt mixture against mirids and GVB. While salt mixtures are quite effective and less disruptive, they are quite chemical specific. Not all chemicals mixed with salt will give the desired benefit. Therefore further investigation is needed to identify those chemicals that are effective with salt mixture against mirids and 3 of 37 GVB. Dr Caroline Hauxwell of DPI&F is working on fungal pathogen-based biopesticides against mirids and GVB and Drs Peter Gregg and Alice Del Socorro of Australian Cotton CRC are working on plant volatile-based attractants against mirids. Depending on their findings, inclusion of fungal-based biopestcides and plant volatile-based attractants in developing a management system against mirids and stinkbugs in cotton could be an important component of an IPM approach.

Reducing the impact of pulse diseases in the northern region

Diseases remain a significant impediment to the achievement of maximum yield potential of pulses (chickpea, peanut and mungbean) and sunflowers in the GRDC northern region. This project worked closely with public and private breeding programs to identify sources of resistance to the major diseases of pulses and sunflower that dominate in the region. Through varied surveillance activities, a watching brief on pulse and sunflower diseases was maintained and a timely and appropriate response was made to several significant disease outbreaks. Information on the biology and management of diseases was extended to clients in a wide variety of ways.

Reducing uncertainty in the assessment of the Australian spanner crab fishery

In collaboration with the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries we compared the effectiveness of the spanner crab monitoring systems used by New South Wales and Queensland and developed a fishery-independent survey protocol acceptable to both states. The objectives of this project were to: 1. Determine the age at which spanner crabs (Ranina ranina) recruit to the fishery 2. Develop a common methodology for monitoring and assessing the Australian spanner crab stock 3. Investigate sources of variability in apparent population density.

The Potential for a New Value Adding Industry for Noni Tropical Fruit Producers

Morinda citrifolia (noni) grows widely throughout the Pacific and is native to Australia. It is a source of traditional medicine amongst Coastal Aboriginal Communities in Cape York, the Pacific Islands and South East Asia, and in recent years has experienced significant economic growth worldwide through a variety of health and cosmetic claims. The largest markets for noni are North America, Europe, Japan, Mexico, Asia and Australia with the worldwide market for these products estimated at US$400 million.

Fallow management Calculating the profitability of different fallow management options

The method used to manage a fallow can influence your overall farm profitability. The benefits of a well managed fallow include improved soil health, reduced weed control costs, a reduction in the number of machinery operations and an increase in sugarcane productivity. Growers generally have two main options for managing their fallow; 1) bare fallow or 2) rotational crop. A bare fallow predominantly involves the use of tillage or herbicides to keep the block free of weeds and volunteer cane. Growing a rotational crop generally uses legumes like soybeans or cowpeas because of their soil health and nitrogen benefits. This paper looks into some of these methods and the flow on effects on farm profitability. Fallow management should never be viewed in isolation, as it is an integral part of the cane farming system. In this analysis we will investigate the effect of fallow management and farming system practices on the whole of farm profitability. There are many factors to consider when looking at different fallow management options. These include the type of farming system practices used and the suitability of a legume crop to a particular situation. Legume crops may not be suited to all situations, therefore it is recommended to consult with your local agronomist for more specific advice. One method of examining the options is to work through an example. In this case we will look at four options that are based on some common fallow management and farming system practices used in the Herbert region.

The suitability of plantation thinnings as vineyard posts.

The aim of this project was to investigate the suitability of thinnings from a range of plantation species for use as vineyard posts. The hardwood plantation species examined were Eucalyptus grandis, E. globulus, E. pilularis, E. dunnii, E. cladocalyx and Corymbia maculata, while Acacia mearnsii was obtained from natural regrowth. The softwood plantation species were P. elliottii, P. radiata and Araucaria cunninghamii. Variables examined included: three air drying regimes; microwave conditioning of E. grandis and E. globulus; two preservative treatments for hardwoods (alkaline copper quaternary compound (ACQ) and pigment emulsified creosote (PEC)); and two preservative treatments for softwood species (ACQ and, for Pinus radiata copper chromium arsenic (CCA)). A further aim was to install treated posts in commercial vineyards for demonstration purposes. From an earlier trial of three hardwood species treated with PEC, demonstration posts previously installed were also to be inspected annually for three years, and any movement of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) from the posts monitored.

Investigation of an emerging bacterial disease in wild Queensland groper, marine fish and stingrays with production of diagnostic tools to reduce the spread of disease to other states of Australia : final report

This project describes how Streptococcus agalactiae can be transmitted experimentally in Queensland grouper. The implications of this research furthers the relatedness between Australian S. agalactiae strains from animals and humans. Additionally, this research has developed diagnostic tools for Australian State Veterinary Laboratories and Universities, which will assist in State and National aquatic animal disease detection, surveillance, disease monitoring and reporting

The effect of post harvest handling on selected native food plants

A commercial issue currently facing native plant food producers and food processors, and identified by the industry itself, is that of delivering quality products consistently and at reasonable cost to end users based on a sound food technology and nutrition platform. A literature survey carried out in July 2001 by the DPI&F’s Centre for Food Technology, Brisbane in collaboration with the University of Queensland to collect the latest information at that time on the functional food market as it pertained to native food plants, indicated that little or no work had been published on this topic. This project addresses two key RIRDC sub program strategies: to identify and evaluate processes or products with prospects of commercial viability and to assist in the development of integrated production, harvesting, processing and marketing systems. This project proposal also reflects a key RIRDC R&D issue for 2002-2003; that of linking with prospective members of the value chain. The purpose of this project was to obtain chemical data on the post harvest stability of functional nutritional components (bio actives) in commercially available, hand harvested bush tomato and Kakadu plum. The project concentrated on evaluating bioactive stability as a measure of ingredient quality.

The Use of Australian Honey in Moist Wound Management

This project has investigated the correlation between antimicrobial activity and the non-peroxide activity of particular Leptospermum-derived honeys. Initial investigations tested the efficacy of these honeys against one particular bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus), while later studies assessed the effect of this honey on a range of food pathogens, animal pathogens (e.g. in mastitis) and human pathogens (e.g. golden Staph). Using honeys sourced from around Australia and screened against several reference microorganisms, the anti-microbial potency of one particular Australian honey (from Leptospermum polygalifolium) was shown to be comparable to NZ Manuka honey (from L.scoparium). The results of this screening of active honeys against pathogenic bacteria has supported the registration of honey by Capilano Honey Limited as a “Drug” with the Therapeutic Goods Administration based on its antimicrobial activity.