Two new Queensland fruit fly outbreaks have been declared in the Riverland from 4–24 April 2023.
Restrictions are now in place in the new 1.5 km red outbreak areas and the Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) staff are visiting all properties to inspect yards, apply organic bait and provide residents with information about what they need to do.
PIRSA Incident Controller of the Fruit Fly Emergency Response, Rob Baker said while we are still in the peak months for fruit fly detections, I encourage the community to continue to be vigilant and remove ripe fruit promptly.
"The most recent fruit fly outbreaks in Waikerie D and Cadell B were discovered thanks to community vigilance and calls to the Fruit Fly Hotline prompting further investigation," said Mr Baker.
"Early intervention gives us the best opportunity to eradicate the fruit fly hotspots and I encourage anyone who finds something wiggling in their fruit to contact PIRSA on 1300 666 010.
"Our teams are working hard to eradicate fruit fly from outbreak areas, and we've started to see fruit fly detections decrease in several outbreak areas in recent weeks."
Chair of the Riverland Fruit Fly Committee and local grower Jason Size said it's great to see citrus growers and growers in new outbreak areas participating in the self-baiting program.
"In the past six weeks it's been encouraging to see 12 more growers register to apply bait or deploy lures to kill fruit fly, which means we currently have 49 growers involved in the program," said Mr Size.
"The more we can do to reduce fly numbers the more effective other eradiation tools like sterile flies will be in breaking the fruit fly life cycle.
"To register for the grower self-baiting program, go to the fruit fly website or call the Fruit Fly Hotline to request a registration form."
New outbreak areas
| Outbreak area | Discovery | Declaration date |
|---|---|---|
| Waikerie D | Maggots in residential peaches | 6/4/2023 |
| Cadell B | Maggots in a grapefruit at a small commercial property | 17/4/2023 |
Extensions to existing outbreak areas
- Glossop
- Monash A
- Renmark
- Renmark West
- Waikerie C
- Winkie C
Outbreak area boundary extensions also affect yellow suspension area boundaries. Search your address on the fruit fly outbreak map to see how fruit and vegetable movement restrictions affect you, depending where you live, travel, work or go to school.
Total outbreak breakdown
| Outbreak area | This fortnight |
|---|---|
| Inactive outbreak areas – No detections for more than 12 weeks | 5 |
| Active outbreak areas – No detections for less than 12 weeks (including 2 new outbreaks) | 35 |
| TOTAL OUTBREAKS | 40 |
The end date for all outbreaks is 14 December 2023, however this may change if further fruit flies are detected.
If you're feeling overwhelmed and don't know where to start, contact a Family and Business (FaB) mentor for a free informal, confidential and independent conversation with a local Riverland mentor – by phone, or in person.
Growers can call a Riverland FaB directly: Robyn Cain 0411 633 085; John Chase 0419 848 672; Brent Fletcher 0439 409 430.
For more information about fruit fly, self-baiting or for the most up to date outbreak advice, visit fruitfly.sa.gov.au or call the Fruit Fly Hotline 1300 666 010.
