[Summit Sun 27 Jan 2011]--THE NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) is seeking the assistance of bushwalkers and visitors to Kosciuszko National Park to stamp out a new and serious threat to the park – Orange Hawkweed. Hawkweed is an iridescent orange mountain daisy from Europe that was first found in Victoria at Falls Creek where it is believed to have escaped from a domestic garden. The weed has continued to spread despite a huge effort to track and destroy it in NSW and Victoria. It was first discovered in Kosciuszko National Park in 2004. Since then it has been found at almost 50 locations. The NPWS has now located two new sites within Kosciuszko National Park, the most recent one last week with volunteers and staff continuing to comb the park while the plant is flowering.
NPWS Southern Ranges Regional Manager, Dave Darlington, said that at the moment in NSW it is confined to an area in the middle of the park.
“The populations we know of are being sprayed and constantly monitored during the year to ensure they are killed and not spreading further. This plant has a real potential to change the whole appearance of the Australian Alps, smothering native vegetation and impacting on wildlife reliant on a native understorey,” he said.
“We are encouraging visitors with an interest to help to talk to our staff in the Visitor Centres about what to look for”.
Mr Darlington warned that under no circumstances should the flower be picked as this may enhance its growth.
“Visitors should photograph it, take careful note of the location and if at all possible flag the site with something that can be easily spotted from a distance. Toilet paper would do the trick. They should then immediately contact the NPWS,” he said.
Orange Hawkweed is a daisy that comes from Europe and has escaped into the Australian Alps. A major search is now underway to track down the weed and kill it before it spreads further. It has the potential to change the apperance of the Australian Alps and become a major pest that will compete with natives. Photo: Dr Keith McDougall
