Abstract
Described as a biological bulldozer, Phytophthora cinnamomi is affecting millions of hectares of diverse native vegetation across Australia. It has been grouped with the European fox, land clearance and climate change as a key threatening process under federal legislation and could potentially be more devastating to the natural environment than salinity. Because of the diverse range of flora (40% of native plant species are vulnerable to Phytophthora dieback), fauna and ecosystems that are affected by this disease, it is important that everyone is familiar with its effects so that a multidisciplinary approach can be taken to reducing its impact. This spoken paper is a summary of the origin of P. cinnamomi, how it affects vulnerable plants, how this in turn affects the landscape and its faunal components, and finally what is happening to help stop the spread of this disease.