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Plant Protection News - June 2008
An eNewsletter from the Office of the Chief Plant Protection Officer (OCPPO)
In this issue:
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Aphid and whitefly images available on PaDIL
Images of a range of aphid and whitefly species have recently been added to the Pests and Diseases Image Library (PaDIL) website.
The images, including 42 aphid and 39 whitefly species, are of pests considered to be biosecurity threats to Australia's plant industries.
Plant health diagnosticians can use the aphid and whitefly images to help identify given specimens at the species level.
In addition to the species images recently added to the PaDIL website, diagnosticians can also view comparative image tables of the aphid and whitefly species. The comparative image tables contain a set of predefined images that best show the diagnostic features for the available species.
OCPPO commissioned the images to enhance Australia?s capacity to more rapidly and easily diagnose these pests.
Australian experts Laurence Mound (Australian National Insect Collection) and Ken Walker (Museum Victoria) collaborated with experts in Canada and the United Kingdom to deliver the images.
The PaDIL website is a collaborative initiative of the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Museum Victoria, Plant Health Australia, the Cooperative Research Centre for National Plant Biosecurity, the Western Australian Department of Agriculture, and Queensland University of Technology.
For more information email Jacek Plazinski in OCPPO or telephone +61 2 6272 4334.
New PaDIL images of priority pests
Fifty two new images of priority plant pests are now available on the Pest and Diseases Image Library (PaDIL) website.
The images are of pest species selected from Plant Health Australia's priority emergency plant pest list (established through its Industry Biosecurity Plan program).
The new images on the PaDIL website are of the following pest species:
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Boll weevil - Anthonomus grandis
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Red banded mango caterpillar - Deanolis sublimbalis
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Turnip moth / Cutworm - Agrotis segetum
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Melon aphid - Aphis gossypii
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Orange tortrix - Argyrotaenia citrana
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Whitefly - Bemisia tabaci B type
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European wheat stem sawfly - Cephus pygmeus
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Sugarcane woolly aphid - Ceratovacuna lanigera
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Cabbage seedpod weevil - Ceutorhynchus (assimilis, napi and pallidactylus)
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Rosy apple aphid - Dysaphis plantaginea
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Sugarcane leaf hopper - Eumetopina flavipes
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Glassy winged sharp shooter - Homalodisca coagulate
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Sunflower moth - Homoeosoma electellum
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Tomato leaf miner - Liriomyza bryoniae
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South American miner fly / Potato leaf miner / Pea leaf miner / Serpentine leaf miner - Liriomyza huidobrensis
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Vegetable leaf miner - Liriomyza sativae (Diptera: Agromyzidae)
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American serpentine leaf miner - Liriomyza trifolii
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Asian gypsy moth - Lymantria dispar
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Barley stem gall midge - Mayetiola hordei
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Strawberry whitefly - Trialeurodes packardi
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Plum fruit moth - Cydia funebrana
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Banded greenhouse thrips - Echinothrips americanus
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Red palm weevil - Rhynchophorus ferrugineus
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Cotton jassid - Amrasca biguttula biguttula
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Coconut bug - Amblypelta cocophaga
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Lateral banded mango longhorn - Batocera rubus
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Black twig borer - Xylosandrus compactus
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Avocado thrips - Scirtothrips perseae
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Oribius weevils - Oribius spp.
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Sugarcane stem borer - Chilo auricilius, C. infuscatellus, C. sacchariphagus, C. terrenellus (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), Eldana saccharina, Sesamia
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Brown headed leaf roller - Ctenopseustisobliquana
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Green headed leaf roller - Planotortrix excessana, Planotortrix octo
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Onion fly / Onion maggot - Delia antiqua
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Subterranean termites - Coptotermes spp.
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American leaf miner / Cabbage leaf miner / Serpentine leaf miner - Liriomyza sativae
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Powder post beetles - Lyctus africanus
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Longhorn beetles - Monochamus spp.
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Dry wood longicorn beetles - Stromatium barbatum
Images of the pest species listed above can be viewed by entering the name of the pest in the site's search function.
Australian plant health diagnosticians will be able to use the images to help identify these pest species should they be detected in the country.
In addition to the new diagnostic images, users can also view data sheets for the new pest species on the PaDIL website.
OCPPO commissioned Museum Victoria to produce and publish the images to the PaDIL website as well as prepare the pest species data sheets.
The PaDIL website is an Australian Government initiative, developed and built by Museum Victoria's Online Publishing Team. Support for PaDIL is provided by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and Plant Health Australia. Project partners include Museum Victoria, Western Australian Department of Agriculture and Queensland University of Technology.
For more information email Jacek Plazinski in OCPPO or telephone +61 2 6272 4334.
New face for plant pest surveillance technology
The Cooperative Research Centre for National Plant Biosecurity (CRCNPB) is embarking on a new challenge to develop an internet surveillance system for prohibited plants and plant products.
The aim of the project is to develop a rapid and customised internet web crawler that will detect organisations who intend selling invasive species (via the internet) which are prohibited in Australia.
The project is a collaborative effort between the CRCNPB, Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia (DAFWA) and the Centre for Integrated Pest Management (CIPM), North Carolina State University.
The CRCNPB and the DAFWA will be using the web tool to proactively identify biosecurity threats to plant health in Australia. Information gained from the tool will be used as a basis for reviewing existing WA border quarantine methods.
Sandy Sferrazza from the CIPM recently visited the CRCNPB project team at DAFWA to start developing the surveillance system using the Agricultural Internet Monitoring System (AIMS). This software rapidly scans websites to find vendors suspected of selling prohibited quarantine material.
For further information about the project, titled Software development and support for invasive species internet monitoring in Australia, contact Dr Simon McKirdy (CEO) or Rob Emery (Project Leader) from the CRCNPB.
Newly adopted International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures
Two new standards and one revised standard were adopted at the third meeting of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM), held in Rome in April 2008.
The standards adopted by the CPM, the decision making body of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), are:
ISPM 30 - Establishment of areas of low pest prevalence for fruit flies (Tephritidae)
This standard provides guidelines for the establishment and maintenance of areas of low pest prevalence for fruit flies (FF-ALPPs) by a National Plant Protection Organisation (NPPO). Such areas may be utilised as official pest risk management measures alone or as part of a systems approach to facilitate trade of fruit fly host products, or to minimise the spread of regulated fruit flies within an area. This standard applies to fruit flies (Tephritidae) of economic importance.
ISPM 31 - Methodologies for sampling of consignments
This standard provides guidance to NPPOs in selecting appropriate sampling methodologies for inspection or testing of consignments to verify compliance with phytosanitary requirements. This standard does not give guidance on field sampling (for example, as required for surveys).
Amendments to ISPM 5: Glossary
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The CPM adopted the term 'bark' and revised the terms 'bark-free wood' and 'debarked wood'.
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A number of terms were deleted:
- authority
- biological pesticide (biopesticide)
- classical biological control
- establishment (of a biological control agent)
- exotic
- import permit (of a biological control agent)
- introduction (of a biological control agent)
- micro-organism, and
- specificity. -
The proposed definition for 'beneficial organisms' proved to be contentious with members. The CPM returned the definition to the Technical Panel for the Glossary for consideration of comments received and to determine whether the term should be maintained in the Glossary.
The CPM 3 report is available for downloading from Reports of the CPM and ICPM. See Appendix 4 of the report for the text of ISPM 30, and Appendix 5 for the text of ISPM 31.
These standards will be available in due course at IPPC Publications: International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs). The standards are recognised under the World Trade Organisation Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures.
The proposed standard on the Replacement or reduction of methyl bromide as a phytosanitary measure was amended and adopted as an IPPC Policy Recommendation.
Issues on a draft Diagnostic protocol for Thrips palmi were not resolved by the CPM and will be further considered by the Technical Panel for Diagnostic Protocols in June 2008. A revised draft of the protocol is expected to be circulated for member comment in early July 2008.
The draft phytosanitary treatments on irradiation which had been circulated for consultation last year were not progressed pending resolution of a number of objections. These objections related to the extent of extrapolation of a range of hosts and/or pests.
Last year's CPM meeting decided to expand its Bureau representation to one member from each FAO region. At CPM 3, Dr Bill Roberts of Biosecurity Australia was elected to the Bureau as the representative for the Southwest Pacific for a two year term.
The CPM established an open ended working group to develop a concept definition and strategy for building national capacity in plant biosecurity. The working group will meet in Rome from 1-7 September 2008. It also agreed a plan to establish a Help Desk and other initiatives to assist countries meet their Convention obligations.
For more information email Julia Rymer (Australian IPPC Secretariat) or telephone +61 2 6272 4837.
Comments sought on draft International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures
The International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) has distributed seven draft International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs) for member consultation. Any comments on these draft standards should be provided to the Australian IPPC contact point by 31 July 2008.
The draft standards are:
1. Regulating wood packaging material in international trade (Revision of ISPM No. 15)
This standard describes phytosanitary measures that reduce the risk of introduction and/or spread of quarantine pests associated with the movement in international trade of wood packaging material made from raw wood.
Wood packaging material covered by this standard includes dunnage but excludes wood packaging made from wood processed in such a way that it is free from pests. The measures described in this standard are not intended to provide ongoing protection from contaminating pests (e.g. termites, mould fungi, snails, weed seeds) or other organisms (e.g. spiders).
2. Categorisation of commodities according to their phytosanitary risk
(Note that this is a further revision of the draft following member consultation in 2007)
This standard provides guidance for importing contracting parties on how to categorise commodities according to their phytosanitary risk when considering import requirements. This categorisation could be useful in identifying whether further analysis is required or not.
The first stage of categorisation is based on whether the commodity has been processed and, if so, the method and degree of processing to which the commodity has been subjected before export. A second stage of categorisation of commodities is based on their intended use after import.
Contaminating pests or storage pests that may become associated with the commodity after processing are not considered in this standard.
3. Fruit fly trapping - proposed Annex 1 to ISPM No. 26 (Establishment of pest free areas for fruit flies [Tephritidae])
This annex provides detailed information for trapping surveys under different scenarios of pest population and control situations for different fruit fly species (Tephritidae) of economic importance.
Different trapping systems and procedures should be used depending on the fruit fly status of the target area, which can be either an infested area, an area of low pest prevalence (ALPP), or a pest free area (PFA). The information in this annex can therefore be applied to other ISPMs relating to fruit flies.
The annex describes the most widely used trapping systems and procedures; nevertheless, there are others available that may be applied to obtain equivalent results for fruit fly surveys.
4. Glossary of phytosanitary terms (Amendments to ISPM No. 5)
New terms to be included:
- incidence (of a pest)
- tolerance level
- phytosanitary security, and
- corrective action plan (in an area).
Revised terms are:
- compliance procedure (for a consignment)
- intended use, and
- reference specimen.
5. Terminology of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in relation to the Glossary of phytosanitary terms (proposed supplement to ISPM No. 5)
Since 2001 initiatives have been taken to address, within the framework of the IPPC, the protection of the environment and of biological diversity in relation to the introduction and spread of non-indigenous species. In particular, ISPM No. 11 on pest risk analysis for quarantine pests has been extensively adjusted to ensure that it covers risks arising from pests that primarily affect the environment and biological diversity, including harmful plants in particular.
Supplement No. 2 of ISPM No. 5 (Glossary of phytosanitary terms) has analysed in detail how the concept of 'potential economic importance', which appears in the definition of a 'quarantine pest', can be understood to cover effects on the environment and biological diversity. This clarification of the scope of the IPPC is now basically understood and accepted by contracting parties.
As a result there has been a need to consider relevant terminology concerning the environment and biological diversity in the context of the ISPMs.
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has proposed a number of such terms and definitions in the framework of its 'guiding principles for the prevention, introduction and mitigation of impacts of alien species that threaten ecosystems, habitats or species'. However, attempts to incorporate these terms into IPPC language have proved unsuccessful because they are based on different concepts. In particular, the CBD is concerned only with species that are moved by human agency, and its terminology refers only to those species (alien species) which have already been moved into an area where they are non-indigenous. This movement is referred to as 'introduction', which accordingly does not include 'establishment' (as it does for the IPPC). So it is not possible to include these fundamental CBD terms and definitions directly in the Glossary. Instead they are explained in the present supplement.
6. Structure and operation of post-entry quarantine facilities
This standard describes general guidelines for the design and operation of post-entry quarantine (PEQ) facilities for holding consignments of plants in containment. Four containment levels are specified.
7. Pest free potato micropropagative material and minitubers for international trade
This standard provides guidance on the production, maintenance and certification of pest free potato (Solanum spp.) micropropagative material and minitubers intended to be moved in international trade. This standard does not apply to movement of field-grown seed potatoes or to potatoes intended for consumption or processing.
The draft standards and templates are available on the IPPC 2008 consultation on draft IPSMs web page.
Comments on these draft standards should be provided on the templates provided. Remember to provide proposed text and rationale of any amended text. Note the IPPC only accepts comments from parties to the Convention via official IPPC contact points so please provide your comments by email to Julia Rymer (Australian IPPC Secretariat).
Please note that the template for comments is slightly different this year as a result of new online IPPC submission procedures. Please take notice of the paragraph numbers in the draft standards and make your comments on the template at the relevant paragraph number.
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