Research at the United States Department of Agriculture’s Brisbane-based Australian Biological Control Laboratory targets native Australian plants that are weeds in the USA.
The Laboratory
The Australian Biological Control Laboratory (ABCL) is hosted by the CSIRO laboratories at Long Pocket in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is operated by the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS).
The staff based there are involved in the search for insects and other organisms that feed on pest insects and plant species that are invasive in the USA. The pest and weed species of interest are those found naturally in Australia and South-East Asia.
The search for potential biocontrol agents is done in close collaboration with scientists in the USA, including those at the USDA-ARS Invasive Plant Research Laboratory (IPRL) in Fort Lauderdale and Gainesville, Florida.
The Australian Biological Control Laboratory studies Australian organisms that are invasive pests in the USA.
The ABCL is the only laboratory with a focus on exploring for agents in South-East Asia.
Its permanent presence in the region and network of collaborators means it is efficient and effective in locating biocontrol agents for weeds in the USA.
The research
Many invasive weeds in the USA, particularly Florida, are native to subtropical Australia. These include:
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the broad-leaved paperbark tree, Melaleuca quinquenervia
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Old World climbing fern, Lygodium microphyllum
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hydrilla, Hydrilla verticillata
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Australian pine, Casuarina spp.
However, the native distribution of many of these weeds continues northward into tropical and subtropical South-East Asia, including:
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Indonesia
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Malaysia
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Thailand
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Vietnam
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Papua New Guinea
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India
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southern China
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New Caledonia.
The location of the ABCL means the scientists based there are able to explore this entire region in their search for the most promising biocontrol agents.
Research conducted at ABCL involves:
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determination of the native distribution of plants that are weeds in the USA
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exploration of the native range for natural enemies
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DNA fingerprinting of newly discovered species
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ecology of the agents and their weed hosts
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field host-range surveys
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preliminary host-range screening of candidate agents.
Only the potential agents with a narrow host range and impact are intensively investigated.
The data gathered on potential agents is combined with information about the ecology of the weed where it is invasive. USDA-ARS collaborators in the USA determine which organisms are best suited to be biological control agents.
The research is critical to controlling weeds in the USA as biological control offers the safest and most cost-effective approach to long-term management of widespread invasive plants and pests. Sometimes it is the only viable control option.
Agents discovered and developed by the USDA team have been successfully used in the biological control of Melaleuca quinquenervia and the team is an integral part of the award-winning Area Wide Management Control Program for Melaleuca in Florida, USA.
The collaboration
The ABCL is a research unit within the USDA-ARS, Office of International Research Programs (OIRP). The personnel and facilities of the ABCL in Australia are provided through a cooperative agreement with CSIRO.
A coalition of US federal, state and local agencies fund the research in Australia on biological control of:
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M. quinquenervia
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L. microphyllum
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H. verticillata.
These include:
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South Florida Water Management District
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Jacksonville District of United States Army Corps of Engineers
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the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
ABCL works closely with project leaders at to the USDA ARS Invasive Plant Species laboratory in Fort Lauderdale, Florida to co-ordinate the research and USDA-ARS National Program staff for direction of Strategic Research.
Read about CSIRO research on Invasive plants.
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