Save the date – Polyphagous shot-hole borer (PSHB) workshop 2-4 May in Perth
As an initiative under Plant Health Australia’s (PHA) National Plant Biosecurity Diagnostics and Surveillance Professional Development Activities, PHA is working with Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD WA) to deliver a PSHB workshop for network members. The workshop will be held 2-4 May in Perth, WA.
Polyphagous shot-hole borer (PSHB) Euwallacea fornicatus is a beetle native to Southeast Asia. The beetle attacks a wide range of plants by tunnelling into trunks, stems and branches. PSHB has a symbiotic relationship with a Fusarium fungus, farming it inside the tree as a food source for the beetle and its larvae. In susceptible trees, the fungus kills vascular tissue causing Fusarium dieback and tree death.
Since PSHB is a current biosecurity threat for the eastern states and under eradication in Western Australia, this workshop provides the perfect opportunity to train interested staff with a surveillance background, entomology and diagnostics background on how to identify PSHB, how to identify PSHB affected trees in the community, and how to isolate and identify Fusarium AF-18 from PSHB beetle and from trees.
A call for expressions to register will be advertised shortly on both the National Plant Biosecurity Diagnostic Network (NPBDN) website and Plant Surveillance Network Australasia-Pacific (PSNAP) websites.
Note: Limited funds (comprising one night’s accommodation) will be available to support participants. Participants will be required to arrange and pay for their own travel to Perth. The workshop will be limited to 20 attendees.
NPBDN and PSNAP members will be supported through the National Plant Biosecurity Diagnostic and Surveillance Professional Development and Protocols Projects, coordinated and delivered by Plant Health Australia (PHA) and funded by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. The objectives of the project are to enhance and strengthen Australia’s diagnostic capacity and capability to identify priority plant pests that impact on plant industries, environment and the community.
