Centre for Invasive Species Solutions

15/10/2026

🌿 Our first e-update is here!

The W**d biocontrol network for drought resilience project is scaling up efforts to tackle seven priority invasive w**d groups across Australia.

Led by CISS, with CSIRO, Queensland’s Department of Primary Industries, Agriculture Victoria and NSW DPIRD, the project is supporting the rearing, release and monitoring of biocontrol agents, alongside community engagement and on-ground action.

From African boxthorn to aquatic w**ds, discover the latest progress and how this nationally coordinated effort aims to strengthen drought resilience and sustainable land management across more than 10 million hectares.

📖 Read the first e-update: https://loom.ly/HCslEmM

Learn more: https://loom.ly/Wwy3_sg

Supported by the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund.

**dBiocontrol

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14/10/2026

**dyWednesday: African boxthorn 🌿

A rust fungus biocontrol agent is now being released in Tasmania to help slow the spread of African boxthorn, one of Australia’s worst invasive w**ds.

Yesterday, CSIRO’s Dr Ben Gooden and Landcare Tasmania CEO Peter Stronach spoke with ABC Northern Tasmania about the work. Community groups across Australia are key partners in getting biocontrol agents out into the field.

Whilst the fungus doesn’t kill the plant, it can substantially reduce flowering and fruiting, which slows the spread by birds and takes pressure off farms, creek lines and coastal islands that are hard to treat any other way.

It’s another tool in the toolbelt, working alongside spraying and mechanical control. The work sits within the W**d biocontrol network for drought resilience project, led by CISS.

Learn more about African boxthorn at **dsaustralia https://loom.ly/yaxjegI
Read more about the project: https://loom.ly/VePT-mk

Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF). 🌿🤝
The project brings together a strong consortium including CSIRO, Agriculture Victoria, NSW’s Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, and Queensland’s Department of Primary Industries to strengthen landscapes, protect biodiversity, and support farmers by reducing the impact of invasive w**ds.
Biosecurity Queensland NSW Government
**dBiocontrol

View our best practice community engagement information hub ‘Community Invasives Action‘ to enhance community involvement in your invasive species management programs

09/10/2026

🐇 This Australian Wildlife Week (5-11 Oct), spare a thought for the native animals feeling the squeeze from feral rabbits.

Rabbits impact more than 300 threatened species, from grazing away the plants wildlife depend on to damaging the habitat they call home.

France 24 recently shone an international spotlight on the issue, featuring CISS’s National Feral Rabbit Management Coordinator, Heidi Kleinert, alongside colleagues from CSIRO, community members, contractors and local government. Coordinating a national response to protect our wildlife is exactly what Heidi and the team do every day.

Watch the full segment 👉 https://loom.ly/Icu9uQo

In much of the world, rabbits are seen as harmless, fluffy pets. Bu...

08/10/2026

🐦 Stop the myna menace

Indian mynas can impact native wildlife, agriculture and local communities. NSW Local Land Services is encouraging landholders to take action and report myna activity through FeralScan.

Recording sightings and control activity helps build a clearer picture of where Indian mynas are occurring and supports coordinated management across communities.

Read more via Shepparton News: https://loom.ly/G0LfTxI

📍 See a myna? Record it on FeralScan and help strengthen the local response https://loom.ly/vpfy5jU

Indian mynas threaten farms and wildlife. Act now to control their population before breeding peaks in December.

03/10/2026

is a long game, and the people living with it know that best. In the latest R.M.Williams OUTBACK magazine Ken Eastwood talks to a fourth-generation grazier near Broken Hill who has seen , warren ripping and new strains all knock rabbit numbers down, only for them to creep back. His view is that "another whole suite of biocontrols is the only answer."

We're glad to see our National Feral Rabbit Management Coordinator, Heidi Kleinert, and the national effort CISS is leading together with our partners to build new biological tools featured in the Nature section of Issue No. 169. A good one for the weekend reading pile.

OUTBACK 👉 https://loom.ly/2tqrqUY
Read more: https://loom.ly/AcIL1Xo
Support our work: https://loom.ly/rTQPGxg

Then head to for the Glovebox Guide, control methods, RabbitScan and a page for Heidi Kleinert, National Feral Rabbit Management Coordinator, all in one place: https://loom.ly/2dIc7rU

02/10/2026

Think you know your feral facts? 🐗

Hard Quiz put some pest questions to its contestants, and they made us smile. Have a go before you scroll:

1️⃣ The cane toad was introduced to Australia in an attempt to control beetles in which crop?

2️⃣ To help locate feral pigs, a radio collar may be fitted to one of them. What is that pig called?

3️⃣ The No. 1 State Barrier Fence in Western Australia was the setting for which 2002 film?

Tell us your answers in the comments. We'll reveal them next week.

Behind the trivia is serious work. Researchers, land managers and communities across the country are tackling invasive animals every day, and smart tools like these are part of how it gets done.

Stuck? PestSmart has your hints:
🔎 https://loom.ly/fGIqPBU

📺 Quiz questions from ABC's Hard Quiz.

01/10/2026

Not your average commuters. Two Indian mynas have reportedly become regular passengers on Sydney's train network, and it's easy to see why footage like this goes viral. Indian mynas are bold, intelligent and quick to adapt, often turning up in the places you'd least expect.

But that same adaptability is exactly what makes them one of Australia's most damaging invasive species. Indian mynas aggressively take over nesting hollows, evict native birds, and destroy eggs and chicks of species like kookaburras and rosellas, pushing them out of their own habitat. What’s more, Indian mynas act as vectors for mites, parasites, and bacterial disease so coordinated, humane control is important to reduce their impacts on native wildlife as well as on human health.

Spotted an Indian myna somewhere unexpected? Log it on MynaScan and help build a clearer picture of where these birds are turning up.

Watch the video: https://loom.ly/a3kNHx4

Access useful resources and learn more: resources
Record on : https://loom.ly/vpfy5jU
Support the Indian Myna Action Group: https://loom.ly/ubUbe6c

29/09/2026

Wider availability of a proven control tool is welcome news for land managers and conservationists. 🐾
In addition to WA, Eradicat® is now registered for use in South Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory, strengthening control options against the threats feral cats pose to our unique native species.

Feral cats have contributed to the extinction of 32 native species and continue to threaten more than 200 others.

The final milestone of the national registration project was delivered in partnership with Western Australian Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA), the South Australian Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) and the South Australian Department for Environment and Water (DEW).

Read more: https://loom.ly/Up_SCWQ

26/09/2026

🌱 Spring lawn tip: don’t get too enthusiastic!

Spring is here, which means it’s tempting to give the lawn a big clean-up. But mowing too short or renovating before your grass is actively growing can leave it struggling to recover.

Before you fire up the mower this weekend, make sure your lawn is ready for a little spring tender loving care. 😉

🔗 More spring lawn tips: https://loom.ly/zjF8MLM

**dsaustralia

Spring has arrived, but experts warn jumping into these popular lawn fixes now could leave your grass looking worse for longer.

24/09/2026

🦠 H5 bird flu: a resource on

H5 bird flu is an emerging biosecurity consideration for people working with pest animals, wildlife and on-ground land management.

PestSmart has brought together practical information to help pest animal practitioners understand the potential risks and work safely, including guidance on:

🔹 Safe handling and disposal of carcasses
🔹 PPE and other safety considerations
🔹 What to do when encountering sick or dead animals
🔹 Reporting suspected cases
🔹 Current national and state and territory guidance

As the H5 bird flu situation develops, this resource provides a useful starting point for practitioners to find the latest advice.

🔗 Explore the PestSmart resource: https://loom.ly/qTJAi9A

Please share with anyone working in pest animal management, wildlife or land management who may find it useful.