Parkinsonia (Parkinsonia aculeata)

Background | Current Research | Key People| Collaborators | Publications | More Information
Biological Control | Biocontrol Agent: Seed-feeding beetle

The Problem
Parkinsonia aculeata (Parkinsonia) is a woody weedy from Central America. In Australia most of its distribution is in remote and sparsely populated parts of Australia. It thrives in diverse climates and habitats and is found on nature reserves, pastoral lands and aboriginal lands. It forms impenetrable thorn thickets and poses a serious threat to riparian, wetland and upland habitats across northern Australia. As a result it has been recognised as one of the 20 weeds of national significance in Australia. Very little research occurred on parkinsonia prior to 2000, and methods to sustainably manage it across the diverse landscapes in which it occurs are not yet available.

Background
A long-term collaborative research program was initiated in 2000 between CE, CSE, QNRME, NT DIPE and DAWA to develop effective management strategies for parkinsonia. Workshops are held annually with the aim of developing a management model, identifying and prioritising research gaps, and maximising research effort across the organisations. In 2001 it became a project within the Australian weed CRC.

Current Research
Research is currently aimed at developing better long-term management strategies for parkinsonia. It also aims to use parkinsonia as a model system with which to tackle more general woody weed issues and to better understand interactions between weeds, environment and management in northern Australian landscapes. Parkinsonia provides a useful system because it is recognised as a serious weed in Australia, and because it grows in such diverse environments.

A network of permanent study sites were set up across northern Australia by CSIRO and local collaborators in 2000-01 to represent the climates and habitats in which parkinsonia grows. This research will help to predict the potential impact of parkinsonia across different landscapes, and therefore prioritise control effort. It will also help tailor management to specific landscapes. In addition QNRME is conducting a large-scale integrated management trial and fire trial (with CSE) in Central Queensland, and CSE is conducting plant physiology and landscape ecological research.

Current research priorities for CSIRO Entomology include:

• understanding its ecology across the varied landscapes in which it occurs

• predicting seed longevity under different environmental conditions

• evaluating existing biological control agents to determine whether their impact can be increased, and to assist in the prioritisation of future agents

• seeking new biological control agents

• development and application of a parkinsonia management model (in DYMEX)
  

Key People

Collaborators

QNRME - Queensland Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Energy

DAWA - Department of Agriculture, Western Australia

CSE - CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems

Australian Weed CRC - Cooperative Research Centre for Australian Weed Management

NT DIPE - Northern Territory Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Environment

Publications

1. van Klinken, R.D. (2004). Workshops proving effective for prickly problem. Weedwatch 5. Vol 2, pp.7, March 2004. (View Weeds CRC pdf)

2. van Klinken, R.D. (2004). How important is environment?: a national-scale evaluation of a seed-feeding beetle on parkinsonia, a widely distributed woody weed. The Eleventh International Symposium on Biological Control of Weeds, Canberra, Australia.
   

More Information

• Weed Management Guide (2004)

• Parkinsonia. How Understanding Helps Management

• Weed CRC RPA - management of invasive rangeland shrubs using parkinsonia as a case study

Background | Current Research | Key People| Collaborators | Publications | More Information
Biological Control | Biocontrol Agent: Seed-feeding beetle