A report on the survey of Lakes Opeta and Bisina to further collect data on presence of Hydrilla verticilata and potential biological control agents

Reports of hydrilla (Hydrilla verticilata) infestation lakes Bisina and Opeta were verbally communicated by some members of FIRRI who undertook surveys during the LVEMP 1 phase (1997 to 2004) to assess the diversity and stocks of fishes in the Kyoga basin satellite lakes. This issue was taken up by FIRRI and NAARI staff who work on aquatic weeds management to ascertain and quantify the presence of H. verticilata and other aquatic weeds, with the sole aim of finding ways and means of controlling one of the world's worst aquatic weeds, H. verticilata.The survey on Lake Opeta indicated that this weed was rare since only a few small broken pieces were sited at the lake's outflow through an extensive wetland to Lake Bisina. It was therefore concluded that it was not economically viable to allocate resources for further survey of H. verticilata on Lake Opeta. This finding therefore discredited the previous (informal) reports that H. verticilata was well established on Lake Opeta. It should be noted that the reports came from scientists who were not well versed with systematics of aquatic plants.

The status of weed biological control in Vanuatu

Biological control of weeds in Vanuatu began in 1935, with the introduction of the tingid Teleonemia scrupulosa to control Lantana camara. To date, nine biological control agents have been intentionally introduced to control eight weed species. Seven of these agents have established on their respective hosts while an eighth, Zygogramma bicolorata, an agent for Parthenium hysterophorus has only recently been released and establishment is unlikely. The fate of a ninth agent, Heteropsylla spinulosa, released for the control of Mimosa diplotricha is unclear. Six other biological control agents, including Epiblema strenuana which was first detected in 2014 on P. hysterophorus on Efate have spread into the country unintentionally. Control of the target weeds range from inadequate to very good. By far the most successful agent has been Calligrapha pantherina which was introduced to control Sida acuta and Sida rhombifolia. The beetle was released on 14 islands and managed to spread to at least another 10 islands where it has effectively controlled both Sida spp. Control of the two water weeds, Eichhornia crassipes by Neochetina bruchi and N. eichhorniae and Pistia stratiotes by Neohydronomus affinis, has also been fairly good in most areas. Two agents, T. scrupulosa and Uroplata girardi, were released on L. camara, and four other agents have been found on the weed, but L. camara is still not under adequate control. The rust Puccinia spegazzinii was first released on Mikania micrantha in 2012 and successfully established. Anecdotal evidence suggests that it is having an impact on M. micrantha, but detailed monitoring is required to determine its overall impact. Future prospects for weed biological control in Vanuatu are positive, with the expected greater spread of recently released agents and the introduction of new agents for P. hysterophorus, L. camara, Dolichandra unguis-cati and Spathodea campanulata.

Biological control of weeds in the 22 Pacific island countries and territories: current status and future prospects

Biological control of introduced weeds in the 22 Pacific island countries and territories (PICTs) began in 1911, with the lantana seed-feeding fly introduced into Fiji and New Caledonia from Hawaii. To date, a total of 62 agents have been deliberately introduced into the PICTs to control 21 weed species in 17 countries. A further two agents have spread naturally into the region. The general impact of the 36 biocontrol agents now established in the PICTs ranges from none to complete control of their target weed(s). Fiji has been most active in weed biocontrol, releasing 30 agents against 11 weed species. Papua New Guinea, Guam, and the Federated States of Micronesia have also been very active in weed biocontrol. For some weeds such as Lantana camara, agents have been released widely, and can now be found in 15 of the 21 PICTs in which the weed occurs. However, agents for other commonly found weeds, such as Sida acuta, have been released in only a few countries in which the weed is present. There are many safe and effective biocontrol agents already in the Pacific that could be utilised more widely, and highly effective agents that have been released elsewhere in the world that could be introduced following some additional host specificity testing. This paper discusses the current status of biological control efforts against introduced weeds in the 22 PICTs and reviews options that could be considered by countries wishing to initiate weed biological control programmes.

Biological control of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum on beans in field by Trichoderma asperellum and Clonostachys rosea.

2009

Mathematical-modelling simulation of red gum lerp psyllid Glycaspis brimblecombei population dynamics towards the strategy identification for biological control with its parasitoid Psyllaephagus bliteus.

2009

Control of citrus black spot (Guignardia citricarpa) by biological control agents and other alternative products.

2007

Biological control of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum on beans in field by Trichoderma asperellum and Clonostachys rosea.

2008

Biological control of Penicillum digitatum on organic orange fruits in postharvest.

2008

Controle biológico de doenças de plantas no Brasil: história, pesquisa, comercialização e perspectivas=Biological control of plant diseases in Brazil: history, research, commercialization and perspectives.

2008

Management of vomplex systems: Modeling the biological pest control

The aim of this paper is to study the cropping system as complex one, applying methods from theory of dynamic systems and from the control theory to the mathematical modeling of the biological pest control. The complex system can be described by different mathematical models. Based on three models of the pest control, the various scenarios have been simulated in order to obtain the pest control strategy only through natural enemies' introduction. © 2008 World Scientific Publishing Company.

The Introduction of Transgenes to Control Blackheart in Pineapple: Biolistics Vs Agrobacterium Transformation, in 'Contributing to a Sustainable Future'

Techniques for the introduction of transgenes to control blackheart by particle bombardment and Agrobacterium co-transformation have been developed for pineapple cv. Smooth Cayenne. Polyphenol oxidase (PPO) is the enzyme responsible for blackheart development in pineapple fruit following chilling injury. Sense, anti-sense and hairpin constructs were used as a means to suppress PPO expression in plants. Average transformation efficiency for biolistics was approximately 1% and for Agrobacterium was approximately 1.5%. These results were considered acceptable given the high regeneration potential of between 80-90% from callus cultures. Southern blot analysis revealed stable integration of transgenes with lower copy number found in plants transformed with Agrobacterium compared to those transformed by biolistics. Over 5000 plants from 55 transgenic lines are now undergoing field evaluation in Australia

The introduction of transgenes to control blackheart in pineapple (Ananas Comosus L.) cv. Smooth Cayenne by microprojectile bombardment

A transformation technique for the introduction of transgenes to control blackheart by particle bombardment has been developed for pineapple cv. Smooth Cayenne. Leaf callus cultures capable of high frequency organogenesis with a short regeneration time were used as explant material. Gus and gfp reporter genes were used to observe and determine transient and stable expression. The ppo gene, isolated from pineapple, was introduced to control blackheart. Co-transformation occurred with constructs containing the nptII gene conferring geneticin resistance. We have recovered 15 independent transgenic gus and gfp lines each from 8 separate experiments and 22 ppo lines from 11 experiments. Gus, gfp, ppo and nptII positive plants have been regenerated, which have been shown by Southern blot analysis to be stable transgenics containing multiple copies of the introduced genes. These results show that biolistic gene delivery in pineapple can be successfully achieved at an acceptable efficiency of 0.21-1.5% for genetic improvement of 'Smooth Cayenne', the industry standard throughout the world.

Sustained genetic control of wheat rust diseases in north-eastern Australia

Control of wheat rusts in north-eastern Australia has been based on resistance breeding since the early 1920s. It has been an enduring journey of discovery, disappointment, and achievement, which has culminated in a pool of knowledge and expertise upon which today's plant breeders can efficiently target durable resistance to the major rust diseases. This paper outlines significant advances in genetic control of rusts in the region, with particular emphasis on the invaluable role played by the University of Sydney rust control program and its influence on wheat breeding in the region and throughout Australia. This paper is part of ‘Global Landscapes in Cereal Rust Control’, see Aust. J. Agric. Res. Vol. 58, no. 6.

Response of an invasive liana to simulated herbivory: implications for its biological control

Pre-release evaluation of the efficacy of biological control agents is often not possible in the case of many invasive species targeted for biocontrol. In such circumstances simulating herbivory could yield significant insights into plant response to damage, thereby improving the efficiency of agent prioritisation, increasing the chances of regulating the performance of invasive plants through herbivory and minimising potential risks posed by release of multiple herbivores. We adopted this approach to understand the weaknesses herbivores could exploit, to manage the invasive liana, Macfadyena unguis-cati. We simulated herbivory by damaging the leaves, stem, root and tuber of the plant, in isolation and in combination. We also applied these treatments at multiple frequencies. Plant response in terms of biomass allocation showed that at least two severe defoliation treatments were required to diminish this liana's climbing habit and reduce its allocation to belowground tuber reserves. Belowground damage appears to have negligible effect on the plant's biomass production and tuber damage appears to trigger a compensatory response. Plant response to combinations of different types of damage did not differ significantly to that from leaf damage. This suggests that specialist herbivores in the leaf-feeding guild capable of removing over 50% of the leaf tissue may be desirable in the biological control of this invasive species.

Population dynamics of the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) in north eastern Australia: simulated responses to control

Wild European rabbits are a serious problem to agriculture in Australia, with an estimated annual cost of A$ 113 million. Biological control agents (myxomatosis and rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus) have caused large and sustained declines in rabbit populations throughout Australia. A simulation model incorporates these diseases as well as warren destruction as methods of controlling rabbit populations in Queensland, north eastern Australia. These diseases reduced populations by 90-99% and the combination of these and warren destruction led to 100% control in simulations at six sites across southern Queensland. Increasing monthly pasture growth by 15% had little effect on simulated populations whereas a 15% decrease reduced populations by 0-50%. An increase in temperature of 2.5 °C would lead to a 15-60% decrease in populations. These effects suggest that climate change will lead to a decrease in the population of rabbits in Queensland and a retraction in the northern limit of their distribution in Australia.