Management of Cactus Species
Global Cactus Working Group (GCWG)

Convenor

Dr Iain Paterson, Rhodes University, South Africa, i.paterson@ru.ac.za

Mission

Invasive alien plants in the family Cactaceae are some of the world's most problematic agricultural and environmental weeds. There are 57 invasive species recorded as problematic in at least 15 countries, with the majority in Australia (39 species), South African (35 species), and Spain (24 species). There have been successful collaborations between some of these countries to fight mutually damaging invasive alien Cactaceae. The International Organisation for Biological Control Global Cactus Working Group (IOBC GCWG) was established in 2015 to improve the control of invasive Cactaceae internationally by creating a platform where the stake holders from different countries can collaborate. One of the main objectives of the group is to promote the use of biological control as a safe and effective method of managing cactus invasions. Another aspect that the group is interested in is the biological control of cactus pest within the indigenous range of the Cactaceae, or where cactus crops are grown.

Consult the WG website (https://www.ru.ac.za/centreforbiologicalcontrol/globalcactusworkinggroupgcwg) for more details about the IOBC Global Cactus Working Group (GCWG).