Protecting Australia's pine plantations from exotic pests and climate change. This project will protect pine plantations (representing 57% of Australia's $3.3 billion pa forestry industry) from the dual threat of exotic pests and climate change. Sirex wood wasp has been well controlled until the recent, unprecedented, increase of ips bark beetles. The ips beetle is now disrupting biological control of sirex by its feeding activity so work is required to understand and combat this effect. The wor ....Protecting Australia's pine plantations from exotic pests and climate change. This project will protect pine plantations (representing 57% of Australia's $3.3 billion pa forestry industry) from the dual threat of exotic pests and climate change. Sirex wood wasp has been well controlled until the recent, unprecedented, increase of ips bark beetles. The ips beetle is now disrupting biological control of sirex by its feeding activity so work is required to understand and combat this effect. The work is made more urgent by looming climate change because storm-damage, drought and heat stressed trees are especially vulnerable to sirex attack. It is estimated that this novel pest management approach could save the industry at least $188 million pa based on a conservative estimate of reducing losses by 10%.Read moreRead less
Linking environmental stress in pine plantations to bark stripping by browsers and fungal attack: developing novel options for management. The Australian forest industry, under the pressure of certification requirements, is moving towards a more integrated, reduced chemical, environmentally sustainable approach to protecting forest. Novel insights into the stress biology of pine will provide valuable information that will underpin efforts to reduce risk e.g. the matching of specific genotypes to ....Linking environmental stress in pine plantations to bark stripping by browsers and fungal attack: developing novel options for management. The Australian forest industry, under the pressure of certification requirements, is moving towards a more integrated, reduced chemical, environmentally sustainable approach to protecting forest. Novel insights into the stress biology of pine will provide valuable information that will underpin efforts to reduce risk e.g. the matching of specific genotypes to site so that pest resistance can be maintained even under environmental stress conditions. By understanding the 'attraction' factor of stressed pine to wallabies we will develop and test an urgently and nationally required diversionary feed for this browser. Lethal control involving poison is becoming increasingly restricted.Read moreRead less