Developing a new bait for pest birds of the grains industry

Who this is for

This project benefits the local government sector, state government, grains industry, and the community.

What's being delivered

• New bait for pest birds.
• Business case for implementing the new bait in SA.
• Practical plan for further research and development.

About the project

The Department for Primary Industries and Regions SA (PIRSA) co-funded this project to research and assess the case for developing and registering a new pest bird bait.

Massive populations of pest birds are increasingly impacting the grains industry. Pest birds consume grain, damage infrastructure, contaminate stores, and pose health and biosecurity risks.

Pest birds, including native species like corellas, also cause social, ecological and economic impacts in our communities.

There are few control tools available to address this problem. Baiting is the most efficient and cost-effective control tool for all pest animals. However, there's currently no bait available for native birds.

Local councils have invested significant resources into managing the impacts of pest birds in communities, but no current approach can decrease the size or nature of the problem. A new strategy, tools and approach are desperately needed.

Project outcomes

This project provided a strong foundation for managing pest birds. The project also:

• provided Technical Assessment of candidate toxins for future bait trials
• confirmed that pest bird impacts have increased over the past decade, with fruit, nut and tuna industries among those most affected.
• delivered an independent economic analysis showing that a new bait could provide substantial benefits relative to its development and registration costs
• developed a project plan guide future research, bait and feeder trials, registration work and funding proposals
• strengthened collaboration across state and local government and industry, while building the evidence councils need to support a coordinated, long-term response.

Further investment is now needed to develop a pest bird management tool. One that can reduce pest bird populations, improve primary industry productivity, and help councils respond more effectively to community concerns.

Resources for LGA members

The final report and supporting documents below can be accessed by LGA members. This includes our member councils, Mayors and Elected Members.

Members can create an account if they're not signed up yet.

Read the new bait for pest birds in the grain industry final report (PDF 205.3 KB).

• Appendix 1 – Pest bird impact in SA – Stakeholder workshop summary (PDF 2.1 MB)
• Appendix 2 – Literature review of candidate toxins for baiting pest birds in Australia (PDF 1.5 MB)
• Appendix 3 – Pest bird control tool – Economic analysis by BDO (PDF 2.6 MB)

Project funding

This project is funded through the Local Government Research and Development Scheme.

This scheme allocates funding to projects that support the development of SA local government. Successful applicants are decided through an annual grant round.

Find out more

If you have any questions about this project or the Research and Development Scheme, please contact:

Mathilde Thorsen
Senior Projects and Grants Coordinator
Email: mathilde.thorsen@lga.sa.gov.au