Skip to main content Skip to main navigation Skip to search

Queensland and NSW floods 2022

Visit recovery.gov.au to see what help is available.

Close
Home

Top navigation main

  • News & media
  • Jobs
  • Ministers
  • Contact us
Main menu

AWE Main

  • Agriculture and land
    Agriculture and land Building stronger and more sustainable agriculture, fisheries, forestry and land care.
    • Animal health
    • Farming, food and drought
    • Fisheries
    • Forestry
    • Land
    • Climate change and agriculture
    • Plant health
    • Drought and rural support
    • Mouse infestation advice
    Xylella

    Protect against unwanted plant pests

    Our biosecurity system helps protects us. Everyone has a role in supporting our biosecurity system.

    Find out more

  • Water
    Water Improving the sustainable management of Australia’s water resources for agriculture, the environment and communities.
    • Coal, Coal seam gas (CSG) and water
    • Commonwealth Environmental Water Office
    • Water policy and resources
    • Wetlands
    Water matters

    Water Matters

    Keep up with the latest news on the department's work in managing Australia's water resources.

    Read the latest edition here

  • Environment
    Environment Improving stewardship and sustainable management of Australia’s environment.
    • Biodiversity
    • Bushfire recovery
    • Climate change and the environment
    • EPBC Act
    • Environmental information and data
    • International activities
    • Marine
    • Partnerships
    • Protection
    • Report a breach of environment law
    • Threatened species & ecological communities
    • Waste and recycling
  • Biosecurity and trade
    Biosecurity and trade Lowering biosecurity risks to Australia, and assisting industry to accelerate growth towards a $100 billion agricultural sector by 2030.
    • Aircraft, vessels and military
    • Biosecurity policy
    • Cats and dogs
    • Exporting
    • Importing
    • Invasive species
    • Pests, diseases and weeds
    • Public awareness and education
    • Trade and market access
    • Travelling or sending goods to Australia
    • Wildlife trade
    Brown marmorated stink bug

    BMSB Seasonal Measures

    Australia has strengthened seasonal measures to manage the risk of BMSB.

    View our seasonal measures

  • Parks and heritage
    Parks and heritage Managing Australia’s iconic national parks, historic places and living landscapes.
    • Australian Marine Parks
    • Australian National Botanic Gardens
    • Booderee National Park
    • Kakadu National Park
    • Christmas Island National Park
    • National parks
    • Norfolk Island National Park
    • Heritage
    • Pulu Keeling National Park
    • The Great Barrier Reef
    • Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park
    The reef

    Great Barrier Reef

    Australia is protecting and conserving this World Heritage Area.

    Find out more

  • Science and research
    Science and research Undertaking research and collecting data to support informed decisions and policies.
    • Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES)
    • Climate change
    • Australia's biological resources
    • National Environmental Science Program (NESP)
    • Our science strategy
    • Australian Biological Resource Study (ABRS)
    • State of the Environment (SoE) reporting
    • Bird and bat banding
    • Supervising Scientist
    Abares

    ABARES Insights

    Get 'snapshots’ of agricultural, forestry and fisheries industries, or analysis of key issues.

    Find out more

  • About us
    About us Enhancing Australia’s agriculture, environment, heritage and water resources through regulation and partnership.
    • Accountability and reporting
    • Assistance, grants and tenders
    • Contact us
    • Fees and charges
    • News and media
    • Our commitment to you
    • Payments
    • People and jobs
    • Publications
    • What we do
    • Who we are
    A day in the life

    A day in the life...

    Our video series showcases the diverse and important work we do.

    Find out more

  • Online services
    Online services We do business with you using online platforms. This makes it easier for you to meet your legal requirements.
Department of Agriculture

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Biosecurity and trade
  3. Pests, diseases and weeds
  4. Plant pests and diseases
  5. Exotic stem borers of sugarcane

Sidebar first - Pests diseases weeds

  • Plant pests and diseases
    • National action plans
    • Barley stripe rust
    • Begomoviruses and vectors
    • Brown marmorated stink bug
    • Citrus canker
    • Cyst nematodes of grains and vegetables
    • Exotic bees
    • Exotic stem borers of sugarcane
    • Exotic tree nematodes
    • Fire blight
    • Fruit flies
    • Giant African snail
    • Guava (eucalyptus) rust
    • Grape phylloxera
    • Gypsy moth
    • Hessian flies
    • Huanglongbing
    • Internal and external mites of bees
    • Khapra beetle
      • Urgent actions to protect against khapra beetle
        • Requirements for high-risk plant products to protect against khapra beetle
        • Requirements for other-risk plant products to protect against khapra beetle
        • Requirements for sea containers to protect against khapra beetle
        • Requirements for seeds for sowing to protect against khapra beetle
      • Khapra beetle in imported goods
      • Khapra beetle bulletin
      • The khapra beetle story
    • Karnal bunt
    • Leaf miner
    • Panama disease tropical race 4
    • Plum pox virus
    • Potato cyst nematode
    • Potato late blight
    • Sudden oak death
    • Xylella and exotic vectors
      • International Symposium on Xylella fastidiosa
    • Russian wheat aphid
    • Tobamoviruses
    • Exotic invasive ants
    • Ug99
    • Wheat stem sawfly
    • Zebra chip

Exotic stem borers of sugarcane

 
​ ​

​​​​​

PLANT PEST

Exotic stem borers of sugarcane

Exotic to Australia

Features: Medium to large moths that eat through sugarcane
plantations as caterpillars

Where they’re from: Indonesia, New Guinea and sometimes
on nearby islands including in Torres Strait

How they spread: Importation of caterpillars or eggs on
infested sugarcane; local spread by flying moths

At risk: Sugarcane, rice, sorghum and corn

Stem borers of sugarcane would be difficult to control if they
made it into Australia’s cane fields.  This is stalk borer
Chilo terrenellus. N. Sallam, BSES, PaDIL

Report it

Keep it out

Keep it out/stop the spread

Stem borers of sugarcane are a group of related insects that feed inside canes causing extensive damage. The borers are big eaters, sometimes ruining 70–80 per cent of the crop.

Many of this group of borers, as well as their preferred host—sugarcane—are native to New Guinea. Some have been known to make it across to islands in the Torres Strait, so biosecurity efforts are focussed on preventing the spread across to the Australian mainland.

The amount of damage these borers cause in crops varies with the particular species. The most severe losses occur with:

  • Top borer (Scirpophaga excerptalis)
  • Ramu shoot borer (Sesamia grisescens)
  • Stalk borer (Chilo sacchariphagus)
  • Stalk borer (Chilo terrenellus)

Adults are medium sized grey or white moths that lay eggs in sugarcane. Larvae hatch out and feed, creating tunnels in the stem that kill the plant.

Stem borers threaten Australia’s valuable sugarcane industry and the communities that rely on it.

Importing goods

To keep sugarcane stem borers out of Australia, never ignore Australia’s strict biosecurity rules.
Import shipments may need to be treated and certified, so before you import, check our Biosecurity Import Conditions system (BICON).

Growers

Be aware that Queensland has Sugar Cane Biosecurity Zones to stop the spread of unwanted pests and diseases. Always comply with these biosecurity restrictions to prevent the spread of pests and weeds. A map of these areas is available from the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries website (PDF).

What to look for

  • Adults are medium sized grey or white moths.
  • Grubs are 3-5 cm long and create tunnels in stems.
  • Small holes may be visible on infested stalks.
  • Upper leaves turn brown.
  • Eggs on the underside of leaves.
  • Frass (faecal pellets) caught in the lower leaves.
Look for holes in sugarcane stalks. S. Eyres WA Department of Agriculture and Food, PaDIL
Moths are medium size, grey to white. Amy Carmichael Queensland University of Technology, PaDIL.
 

Where to look

Importers

Importation of infested cane poses the greatest threat of stem borers of sugarcane making it to Australia. The importation of sugarcane into Australia is prohibited, except for setts specifically imported for propagation at approved post-entry facilities.

Growers

  • Abide by restrictions that apply in sugarcane biosecurity zones.
  • Use good plantation biosecurity including:
    • always purchasing cane that has been inspected by a Sugarcane Productivity Service provider
    • monitoring your crops frequently
    • practicing good farm hygiene.

Everything you need to know is available from Farm Biosecurity.

What to do

If you think you’ve found sugarcane infested with stem borer:

  • take a photo
  • do not disturb infected plants (this may be as simple as closing the doors on a shipping container or covering infested canes with paper bags or fertiliser bags tied tightly around the stems.)

Report it

Seen something unusual? Report it. Even if you’re not sure.

Read the detail

  • NSW Department of Primary Industries: Sugarcane internode borer
  • Farm Biosecurity: Find out about pests of sugarcane and how to protect your farm

Contacts

Call 1800 900 090

Contact us online

Report a biosecurity concern

Thanks for your feedback.
Thanks! Your feedback has been submitted.

We aren't able to respond to your individual comments or questions.
To contact us directly phone us or submit an online inquiry

CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

Please verify that you are not a robot.

Skip

Footer

  • Contact us
  • Accessibility
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy
  • FOI
Last updated: 29 January 2021

© Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.