KANGAROO ISLAND – The South Australian government plans to release millions of sterile blowflies as part of a trial that will gauge whether they can eliminate the flystrike disease that costs the country’s wool industry millions each year.
Flystrike sees maggots infest the breeches of sheep on Australian farms, prompting farmers to adopt breech modification techniques such as the controversial mulesing practice.
The government hopes that if they can eliminate the disease-ridden variety then farmers won’t need to take such measures in years to come, which would prove a win both from a financial and animal welfare perspective.
