Biosecurity
400,000 dead chickens: The Victorian egg farm at the centre of the bird flu outbreak
Thousands of chickens were killed to stem the spread of a deadly strain of bird flu at an egg farm on Thursday, as Australia braces for the looming wave of H5N1.
- by Bianca Hall
Latest
‘Massive surveillance failure’: Fire ant infestation sparks fear of undetected spread
More than 100 nests of potentially deadly fire ants have been discovered on Defence land in the Murray Darling river system.
- by Mike Foley
Swarming fire ants
Fire ants bites can cause a severe burning sensation that lasts up to an hour and in some instances can cause a fatal anaphylactic shock.
Indonesia told of mass cattle deaths only days after ship had left
Indonesia says it would have liked to have known earlier that 151 animals had died on a transport vessel from Darwin.
- by Zach Hope and Karuni Rompies
A missed chance to eradicate fire ants could cost Australia $38 billion
A national outbreak of the pest from its Queensland stronghold would sting the economy – and that’s without even considering the health costs.
- by Mike Foley
Fire ant threat requires whole-of-government response, inquiry hears
Helen Scott-Orr, a former federal inspector-general of biosecurity, warns the threat posed by the invasive pest goes far beyond agriculture.
- by Mike Foley
‘Absolutely devastating’: A tiny exotic beetle will see 180 of Hyde Park’s trees cut down
An exotic beetle native to South East Asia that kills trees by boring tunnels into them and implanting a fungus is invading parks around Perth.
- by Hamish Hastie
Fire ant spread to Tasmania sparks health warning
Experts warn hospitalisations and deaths due to stinging insects are likely to significantly increase if fire ants become endemic in Australia, adding to pressure on the medical system.
- by Mike Foley
Updated
Environmental threats
Businesses in lockdown as fire ants found further south in NSW
The red ant nest has been eradicated, and the ants are no longer considered a risk to the community living in the immediate area.
- by Sarah McPhee and Amber Schultz
Floating ‘rafts’ of deadly fire ants pose growing threat to NSW
Venomous fire ants caught in Queensland floodwaters are forming living rafts that can quickly travel long distances, raising the threat of more incursions into NSW.
- by Mike Foley
Australia drops case against Amber Heard relating to importation of dogs Pistol and Boo
Amber Heard was charged after bringing her two dogs into the country without declaring them in 2015.
- by Nell Geraets