Invasive flower thrips devastate Queensland berry farms, prompting emergency response
The flower thrips Frankliniella intonsa, detected in Australia for the first time, is ravaging strawberry, raspberry and blackberry crops in south-east Queensland, forcing growers to discard large volumes of fruit.
Australia’s first official record of the invasive flower thrips Frankliniella intonsa came in April when Biosecurity Queensland identified damage on raspberries at an Elimbah farm. The 1.2-to-1.8-mm pest has since spread across the Moreton Bay and Sunshine Coast regions, feeding inside blossoms and young berries of strawberries, raspberries and blackberries, which leads to scarring, fruit splitting and reduced marketability.
Strawberry growers, including Queensland Strawberry Growers president Adrian Schultz and farmer Brendon Hoyle, say insecticides have failed and they are discarding up to 70 % of their crop, risking millions of dollars in losses and higher consumer prices. Natural-enemy programs led by Paul Jones of Bugs for Bugs are releasing predatory mites and pirate bugs, but the thrips numbers were already too high for immediate control.
The pest, already present in New Zealand and several other continents, may have arrived via passenger or cargo routes, prompting calls from Greenlife Industry Australia CEO Sean Cole for stricter border monitoring. Biosecurity Queensland pledged ongoing surveillance and collaboration with industry to map the pest’s distribution and develop longer-term management strategies.
Why it matters
The thrip outbreak threatens Queensland’s berry supply, farmer livelihoods and could push fruit prices higher for consumers.
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