Super insect villain finally meets its match

Federated Farmers is congratulating scientists at the Crown Research Institute, Scion, for pursuing a biological control agent for the spectacularly named Australian pest, the Gum Leaf Skeletoniser.

“The Gum Leaf Skeletoniser sounds as if it jumped straight off the pages of a Marvel Comic but this pest is anything but funny,” says John Hartnell, Federated Farmers biosecurity spokesperson.

“The Skeletoniser caterpillar is covered with venomous protective spines that inject venom upon contact. This causes skin irritation in some people and is not the kind of Australian we Kiwis like.

“This villainous bug is highly adaptive and has moved south from Auckland since 2001, where it was rediscovered after being eradicated from Mt Maunganui in the early 1980’s.

“As its name implies, the Skeletoniser loves Eucalyptus so poses a major risk to the 46,000 hectares of Eucalyptus forest we have in New Zealand, not to mention farm shelterbelts and amenity trees as well.

“It’s bad for urban and rural New Zealand because an economic impact analysis carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in 2003, projected this insect has potential to cause some $141 million worth of damage.

“Given this, Federated Farmers is extremely buoyed by news that the Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA) has approved the Skeletoniser’s worst nightmare.

“That’s the importation from Australia - after years of careful study too - of one of its natural control agents, the parasitic wasp, Cotesia urabae. This Skeletoniser insect villain will meet its natural match.

“Given the Skeletoniser’s likely impact on Eucalyptus, Federated Farmers along with other stakeholders including Iwi, have supported research into natural biological control agents. In Cotesia urabae we’ve got it because the wasp’s eggs use the Skeletoniser as food.

“Both Scion and ERMA need to take a big bow for the work and perseverance they’ve shown. We can only hope that the wasp now flourishes at the Skeletoniser’s expense.

“What the Skeletoniser shows is that the price of biosecurity is eternal vigilance. As a country we need to up the ante at the border to ensure we don’t have to be as reactive in future,” Mr Hartnell concluded