Similar problem in South Africa. Three insect species (including that
moth) & herbicides are use here.
Alan C
On 27-Jun-18 08:00 AM, Brian Walters wrote:
On 27 June 2018 at 13:32 "Daniel J. Matyola" <danmaty...@gmail.com> wrote:
Every year, around Fathers Day, my carpets of prickly pear cactus burst
forth into luxurious blooms:
http://dan-matyola.squarespace.com/danmatyolas-pesos/2018/6/24/prickly-pear
Very nicely framed and very spectacular.
Every time Prickly Pear is mentioned it brings to mind the devastation that the
plant caused to farmland in Australia in the early part of the 20th century. It
was introduced here in mid 1800s and at its peak in the late 1920s covered
almost 25 million hectares.
In one of the most spectacular examples of biological control, it was tamed by
millions of larvae of a moth (appropriately named Cactoblastis) which chomped
their way through the prickly pest.
There is even a memorial to the Cactoblastis moth:
http://monumentaustralia.org.au/themes/disaster/plagues/display/91971-cactoblastis-memorial
Cheers
Brian
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Brian Walters
Western Sydney Australia
http://lyons-ryan.org/southernlight/
https://500px.com/supera1000/galleries
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