SKELETON weed has been spotted for the first time in Wyalkatchem by a local farmer, on the back of an awareness campaign by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD).
The local farmer, who didn't want to be named, said he was surprised to see the weed as it looked similar to a few different weeds.
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With signs up in the area and after hearing repeated ads on the radio to be on the lookout, the farmer said a suspicious plant caught his attention.
"There are other plants that look very similar, so when I first saw it, I thought it looked a bit different, it looked a bit like skeleton weed but I didn't think it was," he said.
"I kept thinking about it and thought oh well I better get dad to go take some photos.
"I sent them through to DPIRD, they came up from Goomalling to have a look at it and it was skeleton weed."
The farmer said a DPIRD representative responded quickly and "they were really good".
Luckily it was just a small patch, which DPIRD quickly treated and will spray again in winter.
It is understood no one else in the Wyalkatchem area has spotted skeleton weed, but the local farmer has notified his neighbours of his recent sighting.
"It's good that we found it, so we can isolate it and get rid of it before it takes out a whole paddock," he said.
This year, DPIRD in collaboration with seven Local Action Groups, is using drones to monitor more than 56,000 hectares.
If you spot skeleton weed on your property make sure you notify DPIRD as soon as possible.
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