It's the little things that can cause the most damage. And it is these little things that Scott Templeton is after. The lanky and gregarious 43-year-old Plant Biosecurity Inspector and Senior Operations Officer runs the Coen Information and Inspection Centre 25 kilometres north of Coen on the Cape York Peninsula for the Department of Primary Industries & Fisheries.

Scott Templeton's main role, so he says, “is to inspect items going out of Cape York that could do harm to agricultural industries to the south. We try to spot potential high risk targeted pests and diseases.”

Every car going south therefore has to stop at the Inspection Centre, not much more than a large shed without a front and back wall.

There is nothing threatening or suspicious in the way Scott Templeton approaches the vehicle. A disarming smile, a twinkle in his eyes and a few friendly words disarm most travellers who might feel inconvenienced by the stop.

He casually asks all the questions he has to ask: “Where are you coming from? Where are you heading?” Then more small talk, a little bit of banter.

While all this is happening his eyes scan the interior of the vehicle. The question to have a quick look in the esky comes easy, sounds natural.

The contents of the esky proves to be fine, but tucked behind the cool box, hidden amongst camping gear, Scott discovers two coconuts, still in their green husks. Almost apologetically he explains the risks coconuts with their husks provide because pests could hide in the husk. The travellers willingly surrender them to Scott.

But despite the smiles and the chitchat, Scott is serious about his job.

“If a pest or a disease slips through, it could be devastating,” he says.

Transporting mangoes past the checkpoint is an absolute taboo because of the Red-banded mango caterpillar. Bruised or stung fruit are suspects for carrying pests and diseases and are confiscated. Inspectors will also look out for borers in firewood, or sugarcane, mango and banana plants.

“The Coen Information & Inspection Centre is the second line of defence against exotic incursions, against pest and diseases so far not found on mainland Australia”, explains Scott.

“The frontline agencies are Customs and the AQIS (Australian Quarantine Inspection Service). They patrol Australia's coastline with a 20 kilometre buffer zone inland.”

Scott Templeton and his team come into play should something undesirable get past them.

The two defence lines are especially crucial on the Cape York Peninsula, a so-called high risk area and a quarantine frontline because of its proximity to Papua New Guinea. Therefore the entire area north of Coen has been declared the Cape York Peninsula Pest Quarantine Area and acts as a buffer against pets and diseases especially from Papua New Guinea.

“The tropical country north of Australia”, says Scott, “is a hotbed for potentially devastating diseases like foot and mouth, as well as exotic pests like the Papaya fruit fly or the red-banded mango caterpillar.”

The Screw worm fly, an insect that lays its eggs in wounds of warm-blooded animals and can cause potentially serious losses, is also present in Papua New Guinea. And so is the banana skipper. Once introduced into Australia, the effects on the banana industry could potentially be devastating.

An integral part of Scott's job is education, raising public awareness about the role he and his staff are playing to protect mainland Australia and to point out the potential danger that is lurking behind tiny insects and exotic diseases.

“Ninety five percent of travellers pull in on the way north to pick up a Cape York Information Kit at the Information Centre,” Scott says.

They also check out the display showing some of the diseases and little nasties that potentially threaten Australia's mainland.

When a bus full of students from the exclusive Scotch College in Melbourne stop on the way north, Scott turns into a lecturer and gives a spontaneous talk.

The awareness campaign by the DPI&F extends beyond the Information centre and also targets communities on the peninsula.

“When we are out in a remote camp we ask people to deep–bury and burn any bone or meat products,” explains Scott.

“We also discourage swill feeding due to concerns about foot and mouth disease. I think it is very important to work with the communities to get the biosecurity message out.”

Field work is part of Scott's job description and checking a fruit fly trap line between Coen and Archer River every fortnight forms one of his duties. The first of a series of traps is situated near the indigenous cemetery at the outskirts of Coen. Once a Chinese market garden, now only large mango trees mark the area where vegetables were grown.

“The traps,” explains Scott, “consist of white plastic containers with openings for the fly to enter the trap. Inside the container is the wick, several dental cotton rolls drenched in lure and insecticide. The traps are designed to check if the Asian papaya fruit fly, a serious horticultural pest, is stating a comeback.”

The fruit fly managed an incursion into far north Queensland in 1995 and it took three years and more than $30 million to get rid of the pest. The traps are placed in strategic locations where fruit trees might attract the pest.

“My job is to collect the dead flies, place them in carefully labeled small containers and send these to an entomologist in Cairns where the trapped flies will be identified and the alarm raised, should there be a Papaya fruit fly amongst the dead insects.”

But going on a trap line with Scott Templeton is not just collecting fruit flies out of traps.

On the way to Archer River Roadhouse Scott inspects road kill for possible screw worm infestation. Market gardens on stations and private properties are also on the list.

“A big part of our job is to do surveillance on stations and particularly roadhouses. I'm worried about tourists who might collect infected fruit here and transport it south”.

At the Archer Roadhouse it is the vegetable garden that attracts Scott's attention. Meticulously he inspects the thriving okra, squash, cucumber and broccoli plants. Then he retrieves a strange device out of his “tool bag”. It is a small glass container with a short and a long plastic pipe leading into it. The device, called a Pooter, is designed to collect small ants by sucking them into the glass.

“I'm checking for fire ants, electric ants and crazy ants to make sure that those targeted ants are not found on the peninsula,” he explains, sucking tiny ants of the bark of an old mango tree.

Another insect he is after lives exclusively in mango trees – the Mango Leaf Hopper. He sweeps the lower branches with a net to check weather the tree is invested by the insect.

“The little creatures sting the flower stems and then the tree won't fruit”, says Scott.

Banana plants are also on his list: “I'm looking for Banana skipper but also Black Sigatoka, a fungal disease.”

This time he didn't net anything nasty on his trap line. But that doesn't mean Scott and his team can relax.

Essentially a whole nation depends on the vigilance, the dedication and the resourcefulness of the pest detective and his team in the fight against potentially large armies of tiny enemies.

“It is a war we have to win,” he says.