October 2023 - November 2023 - Update

A weedy South African orchid, Disa bracteata, has recently been discovered on Flinders Island. It was first identified in late spring 2022 as a single plant at the Whitemark Showgrounds. The means of its arrival to the Furneaux Islands remains unknown, but it has also been found in Tasmania over the past couple of years.

This plant is considered a high-priority weed for control to prevent its establishment. Fortunately, Disa is not poisonous, but it reproduces prolifically, with each plant potentially producing hundreds of viable seeds. So far on Flinders, Disa has been found and removed, or otherwise controlled, at five sites, most of which are road verges.

The largest population was found on Memana Road in the vicinity of the Pats River bridge. Small populations have also been removed from beside Conways Road near the junction with Lackrana Road, and near the southern end of Badger Corner Road. Plants have been recorded from the northwest part of the Showgrounds and on private property close to Palana Road at Blue Rocks.

If anyone knows of, or finds more of, this orchid species anywhere, please contact the Council's Weeds & Environment Officer, Kat, on 0490 801 512 or by email at enviro@flinders.tas.gov.au