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Bellyache bush (Jatropha gossypiifolia)

A poisonous shrub that forms dense thickets along creeks and floodplains across northern Australia. Its seeds and leaves are toxic to livestock and people.

Key facts

Type: Weed, shrub.

Native to: Tropical Central and South America.

Established in: QLD, NSW, WA, NT.

Best time to act: Control in the wet season while plants are actively growing and before seed set.

Identification

  • Shrub to 4 m with purple-tinged new growth and sticky hairs on the leaf stalks.
  • Lobed leaves with three to five lobes, purple when young and green with age.
  • Small red flowers with yellow centres, followed by three-lobed capsules that explode to throw seed.

Where it grows

Riverbanks, floodplains, roadsides and disturbed areas in the dry tropics.

Why it matters

  • Toxic to cattle, horses and people.
  • Forms thickets that exclude pasture and restrict access to water.

How it spreads

  • Seeds thrown from capsules, then carried by water and floods.
  • Seeds and soil moved by vehicles and machinery.

Control options

  • Hand pull or grub seedlings and small plants.
  • Foliar, basal bark or cut stump application of registered herbicides.
  • Fire is effective in some situations when followed by seedling control.
  • Follow-up for several years to exhaust the seed bank.

Hygiene and washdown

  • Wear gloves when handling, as the sap irritates skin.
  • Clean machinery after working near creeks and floodplains.
  • Inspect and clean vehicles, plant and footwear before leaving an infested area, paying attention to tyres, radiators, belly plates, tracks and floor mats.
  • Wash down at a designated bay where runoff is contained and can be monitored for seedlings.
  • Record each washdown so the client has evidence of clean entry and exit.

Classification by state

  • Australia (national): Weed of National Significance. One of 32 nationally agreed priority weeds, managed through national strategies with all states and territories.
  • Queensland: Restricted matter, category 3. Do not give it away, sell or release it into the environment. Everyone must also take all reasonable and practical steps to minimise its risks (the general biosecurity obligation).
  • New South Wales: Not a priority weed. Not a state or regional priority weed in NSW. The general biosecurity duty applies: anyone dealing with it must prevent, eliminate or minimise the risk it poses.
  • Victoria: Restricted weed. Where it is a restricted weed, trade in it (including the plant, its seed or contaminated material) is prohibited.
  • South Australia: Declared plant. Depending on the declaration, it can be an offence to move it on public roads or sell it, and landowners may be required to control it on their land.
  • Western Australia: Declared pest (C3). C3 Management: landholders must manage it to reduce its impact and stop it spreading.
  • Tasmania: Declared weed. Property managers are required by law to control declared weeds, and their import and sale are prohibited.
  • Northern Territory: Declared weed, Class A and B. Class A: to be eradicated. Class B: growth and spread must be controlled. All declared weeds are also Class C, so they must not be brought into the NT.
  • Australian Capital Territory: Declared pest, notifiable, prohibited. It is a declared pest throughout the ACT. You must report it to ACT Biosecurity. Dealing with it, such as selling, moving or keeping it, is prohibited.

Legal obligations

Every state and territory places a duty on landholders and people working on land to prevent the spread of invasive species, such as the general biosecurity obligation in Queensland and the general biosecurity duty in New South Wales. Declarations and control requirements differ between states and local government areas, so check the current official list before work starts.

  • Queensland: Biosecurity Act 2014 (Qld), administered by Biosecurity Queensland (13 25 23)
  • New South Wales: Biosecurity Act 2015 (NSW), administered by NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development
  • Western Australia: Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 (WA), administered by the WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development
  • Northern Territory: Territory Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1976 (NT), administered by NT Department of Lands, Planning and Environment

Sources