Aquatic environments in South Australia are under threat from a range of introduced marine and freshwater pest species. Aquatic pests can have major impacts on biodiversity and commercial industries, such as tourism and seafood, because they out-compete native species for habitat and food and adversely affect the ecosystems on which industries often depend.

Once a pest has become established, eradication is not always possible and control is often very difficult. Biosecurity SA works to manage the threats from aquatic pests by:

1. Monitoring for the entry, spread and establishment of new pest species.
2. Responding to new sightings and occurrences of pest species before they become established.
3. Supporting control programs to minimise the ongoing impacts of aquatic pests that cannot be eradicated.
   

Why we need your help to find aquatic pests

Early detection and monitoring by the community are vital tools in identifying new pest species before they become established and controlling their spread.

We rely on the community to report sightings and many successful pest eradication and control programs are the result of community members reporting new pest species.

If you know what species are normally present in the aquatic environments near you, you can learn to recognise any unusual species or species that are showing an abnormal change in abundance. You might not be able to identify a particular organism as a new invading species based on its shape or colour, but you might notice that this new organism has rapidly overgrown rocks and shoreline that historically had been a diverse community of other types of marine life.

Large numbers of dead or dying fish may be an indicator of the presence of an environmental issue or disease. Any sightings of large numbers of dead or dying fish should be reported immediately to the 24 hour FISHWATCH hotline on 1800 065 522.

How to report an introduced species

• Record the location accurately (use Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates if possible).
• Record the depth and type of bottom (e.g. sandy, rocky etc).
  
• Record how it was found, for example tangled in fishing tackle or anchor, drifting or sighted attached to a substrate.
  
• Collect a sample (except in an aquatic reserve) and store it in a plastic bag.
  
• Don’t throw any suspicious animal or weed back in the water.