Training of Trainers on awareness and management of Parthenium in Pakistan
As one of its key priorities, CABI under the Action on Invasives programme aims to raise awareness about the threat of invasive species with the relevant government departments in Pakistan. In particular to address the issue of the highly invasive Parthenium weed. Through public awareness campaigns and sharing invasive management advice for better control practices,…
National emergency declared as Colombia confirms the presence of TR4 banana disease
The global banana industry is facing a new major threat. On the 8th August, the Colombian Agricultural Institute announced that it has confirmed the presence of a strain of Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cubense, known as Tropical Race 4 (TR4) in the northern region of the country. Since then the Colombian government has issued a national…
Potential Slug Invasions and their Impact on UK Biosecurity (Part 2)
By Dr Jenna Ross Guest writer, Dr Jenna Ross, from Crop Health and Protection (CHAP), joins us for the second of her two-part special series (read part 1) on the outputs of her prestigious Nuffield Farming Scholarship. Jenna spent 26 weeks travelling the world studying all aspects of slug invasions and slug control, and in…
Invasion of a predator: Lionfish
By Rebecca Quarterman and Hannah Fielder The majestic, unusual looking Lionfish could be seen as harmless to the untrained eye. Yet, this invasive species has multiplied aggressively over the last two decades to become a serious threat to biodiversity in the marine setting. The red lionfish (Pterois volitans) and the devil firefish (Pterois miles) are…
Traded forest tree seeds pose a great risk of introducing harmful pest, new research shows
CABI has led an international team of scientists who strongly suggest that the global trade of forest tree seeds is not as safe as previously believed, with insect pests and fungal pathogens posing a great risk to trees and forest ecosystems worldwide. Non-native insect pests and fungal pathogens present one of the major threats to…
Invasive species hitch a ride on marine litter
We are more aware than ever of the impact of pollution on marine life, from ingestion and entanglement in manmade waste, through to the discovery of microplastics within microorganisms, fish and large mammals. One perhaps overlooked impact is its role in the spread of invasive species. Acting as a raft on which potential invasive species…
Continuing the biological fight against a hardy foe – the maize-devastating western corn rootworm
CABI is continuing the fight against the maize-devastating western corn rootworm (Diabrotica virgifera virgifera) by collecting more than 22,000 live specimens of this chrysomelid beetle for further research into its biological control. Dr Stefan Toepfer has been busy in the maize fields of southern Hungary gathering the insects, which, of Mexican origin, have invaded many maize…
Potential slug invasions and their impact on UK biosecurity (Part 1)
Guest writer, Dr Jenna Ross, from Crop Health and Protection (CHAP), joins us for a two-part special series (read part 2) on the outputs of her prestigious Nuffield Farming Scholarship, where she spent 26 weeks travelling the world studying all aspects of slug invasions and methods of control. In Part 1, Jenna discusses the current…
Deploying biopesticides to combat fall armyworm in South Sudan
A new project in South Sudan is combatting the fall armyworm, an insect that can cause significant damage to crops, particularly maize. With more than half of South Sudan’s current population—nearly 6.2 million people—in need of life-saving food assistance, safeguarding food security where possible is essential. Launched in January 2019 as a partnership between CABI,…
Collaborative effort in Kenya to manage the impact of scale insect in coastal region
By Fernadis Makale, CABI Scale insects – such as the coffee mealybug and cassava mealybug – are some of the least studied group of invertebrates in East Africa. However, a collaborative effort has been made to address the threat they pose to smallholder farmers: despite their cross-cutting status as pests in all plant groups, crops,…