Exotic pest alert - Russian Wheat Aphid

Landholders and agronomists carrying out crop inspections across Southern New South Wales are being urged to keep an eye on emerging cereal crops and report any signs of damage or strange pest activity, after the exotic pest - Russian Wheat Aphid - was detected in South Australia's mid-north.

This is the first report in Australia of this high priority notifiable pest of the grains industry.

Cereal hosts include wheat, barley, triticale and oats and damage symptoms include a noticeable loss of green colouration across the crop, and on closer inspection, stunted plant growth and loss of vigour.

If Russian wheat aphid becomes established, it could have considerable impacts on yield (up to 80% in wheat and 100% in barley) along with other management issues, including unknown insecticide resistance status and varietal response, with current varieties likely to be severely impacted.

The NSW Department of Primary Industries is requesting inspections, including negative observations, be recorded via their NSW RWA surveillance reporting sheet, which has been uploaded to the FarmLink website, along with other information resources relating to Russian Wheat Aphid.