Amazon frogbit (Limnobium laevigatum) is an invasive floating aquatic plant that has been distributed across the world in the aquarium trade. It has become established in waterways and wetlands and is now a major weed in Queensland and New South Wales. There is ongoing work in the Barron River catchment to manage the major infestations that have established but it will become much harder to limit its impacts if Amazon frogbit enters the Mitchell River catchment. Mitchell River Watershed Management Group has been working with Mareeba Shire Council and other organisations to maintain a Frogbit Sentinel Network to prevent spread into the Mitchell River catchment.
Frogbit spreads rapidly creating an impenetrable layer on the surface of water. This causes a choking effect impacting aquatic and bird life degrading water quality from decomposing weed matter. Tourism and recreation are also affected along with irrigation, power and transport infrastructure.
The sale and trade of frogbit is prohibited under New South Wales law and in some Queensland local government areas. It is not currently prohibited in Queensland Government regulations. We need urgent action to ban frogbit for trade and distribution to protect our FNQ waterways.
Petition to List Amazon Frogbit as prohibited species in QLD
Legislative and regulatory change from a prohibited list to a permitted species list process is required to end the proliferation of invasive weeds, like frogbit, in Queensland.
In the meantime, we request that the Hon Mark Furner MP Minister for Agriculture Development and Fisheries and Minister for Rural Communities instruct the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries to list Amazon Frogbit (Limnobium laevigatum), and likely substitute species Sponge Plant (Limnobium spongia), as Category 1 prohibited material under the Biosecurity Act 2014 so that sale and trade is prohibited in Queensland.
You can sign the petition on Invasive Species Council’s website.
This petition has been organised by
the Invasive Species Council invasives.org.au
Cairns and Far North Environment Centre
Mitchell River Watershed Management Group mitchell–river.com.au
History of Amazon Frogbit Working Group
First meeting of the Amazon Frogbit Working group chaired by CAFNEC in 2021
CAFNEC has been working alongside FNQ Regional Organisation of Councils, Mareeba Shire Council, Mitchell River Watershed Management, Qld Water & Land Carers, Wet Tropics Waterways and key individuals including Paul Fisk, to develop this plan while also managing current and emerging infestations.
Amazon frogbit (Limnobium laevigatum) is an introduced aquatic plant which was first detected in the Wet Tropics region in McCutcheon, Cassowary Coast, in 2010. This was also the first detection of it as a naturalised plant in Queensland. Known from naturalised sites in the Cairns lowlands (where it is now removed), it was first recognised as a serious weed in the Mareeba/Atherton Tableland area of North Queensland in 2016.
Amazon frogbit is a highly invasive aquatic weed that chokes out other native species and stops sunlight penetrating the water, disrupting the natural ecosystem. Currently Frogbit is not a regulated species under the Queensland Biosecurity Act 2014 and there is no funding from the State or Federal government to address the problem.
In 2020 it was detected in the Peterson Creek, a tributary of Tinaroo Falls Dam. Biosecurity agencies, councils, volunteers and Muluridji Tribal Aboriginal Corporation (MTAC) have responded to this threat with management programs, community actions, and public education efforts. A network of interested parties has formed to progress the management of Amazon frogbit in the Wet Tropics (and adjoining) bioregions in the form of a working group facilitated by CAFNEC to develop the response plan.
The Amazon frogbit Biosecurity Response Plan provides an overview of the weed’s management options, invasive biology, and impacts. It makes recommendations regarding management actions required to respond to the current infestations and to prevent spread to new catchments in the Wet Tropics (and neighbouring regions). The plan also outlines the current legislative requirements and future options supported by a communication, education, and engagement plan.
We are now working with Invasive Species Council and Mitchell River Watershed Management Group running a petition calling on Hon Mark Furner MP Minister for Agriculture Development and Fisheries and Minister for Rural Communities to instruct the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries to list Amazon Frogbit (Limnobium laevigatum), and likely substitute species Sponge Plant (Limnobium spongia), as Category 1 prohibited material under the Biosecurity Act 2014 so that sale and trade is prohibited in Queensland.
We also want to see legislative and regulatory change from a prohibited list to a permitted species list process in Queensland to end the proliferation of invasive weeds, like frogbit, in Queensland.
Please reach out to CAFNEC Community Organiser Monique Jeffs, by email getinvolved@nullcafnec.org.au or by calling the CAFNEC office 07 4032 1746, if you would like to find out more or get involved with the FNQ Amazon Frogbit working group coordinating management of the current Barron infestations and preventing the further spread into the Gulf.