In earlier posts we showed the massive impact that Fireblight Beetles have on the regrowth of some Wattle species following the 2009 fires. This included a massive dieback of Wattles which was most visible in spring followed by a recovery in Summer when the Beetles stopped being active. Well the cycle of dieback has started again and currently the Beetle Larvae are actively chomping away on the new Wattle growth. See this video below for vision of the Larvae in action and let this site know if you can find any activity in a forest near you. This video was taken in the Won Wron State Forest.
Our black wattles in Chum Creek, VIC are suffering the same attack. We noticed it last year and now in late winter/early spring. Our bush was burnt in the 2009 and the black wattles came back think, the dieback is opening up the canopy in area. At a guess 50-60% of wattle is effected.
Yes they certainly have a dramatic impact, we have had a few earlier posts updating on the local situation that you might be interested in, also had this comment from the Humevale region where they have started up a site for people to share observations on Fireblight Beetle activity, I have copied that post below. The area around here seems to be going through a similar cycle to last year, after the Wattles recovered a bit over Summer and Autumn, they are being defoliated again now.