Assault on the Sepik River (PNG) - Salvinia molesta

Abstract

From the Archives of the 1980's - Salvinia molesta entered the mighty Sepik River in Papua New Guinea in the 1970's. The communities nearby relied heavily on the Sepik River for communication, transport and food but soon the Salvinia became a menace and clogged water intakes and fouling propellers of outboard motors. However in 1979, the small black weevil which became the perfect candidate for biological control as it fed only on the Salvinia and in 1982 the weevil was released and became the solution for the Salvinia-infested waters.