A risk assessment of the tropical wetland weed Mimosa pigra in northern Australia

About the report

Mimosa pigra (mimosa) is an aggressive pan-tropical shrub that has been present in northern Australia for more than 100 years. Only in the last few decades has it become a major weed of the coastal floodplains of the Top End of the Northern Territory (NT). Mimosa has attracted a great deal of attention and tens of millions of dollars have been spent on research and management techniques.

This risk assessment follows the risk assessment framework developed for the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (van Dam et al 1999, www.ramsar.org) and involves the following steps: problem identification; outline of the effects and potential extent of the problem; identification of the risks; and an outline of current management practices, including identification of uncertainties and information gaps in mimosa management. The assessment contains information from a variety of published and unpublished reports as well as information obtained through discussion.