Close collaboration between the Australian Quarantine & inspection Service (AQIS) and one of its key stakeholders, Northern Stevedoring Services (NSS), ensures that serious invasive pests, such as the Black Spined Toad, are prevented from entering Far Northern Queensland via the docks at Cairns.

Recently an eagle-eyed NSS waterside worker intercepted two Black Spined Toads in the hull of the Territory Trader, a freighter that regularly travels between Cairns and Amampare, West Papua.

The Black Spined Toad (Bufo melanostichtus), which is found in parts of Asia, including Indonesia, is closely related to the Cane Toad and like its larger relative, poses a major threat to Australian native wildlife. What is more concerning about the Black Spined Toad is that it can become established in cooler climates, making it an even greater potential pest to much more of Australia.

To prevent these toads from getting ashore at Cairns, NSS has worked closely with AQIS to devise a series of defensive measures. These include placing discharged containers in the ‘toad barrier’ –  an area lined with a large black, plastic, perimeter barrier designed to contain any errant toads that have hitched a ride on the containers.

Then on subsequent cleaning days the containers are placed on stands for inspection and washing. Empty containers are also internally cleaned and inspected whilst on these stands.

Even the water used to wash down the containers passes through a silt trap that captures larger dirt particles and any sizeable foreign matter contained in it and the remaining run-off water goes through an advanced filtration system to capture and remove any finer foreign bodies.

The laden containers are then placed on the ground within the approved quarantine facility and unpacked and the contents cleaned and inspected

But the story doesn’t end there, for AQIS has installed, and regularly inspects, a series of toad traps strategically placed around the Cairns port.

The set-up at Cairns port is a fine example of how AQIS forms strategic partnerships with stakeholders to ensure that Australia’s borders remains secure from unwanted invasive pests.