Issue 14 | June 2025

In this issue, we cover new surveillance alerts, upcoming events and career insights from across the network.

Registrations now open for the 2025 Virtual Annual Surveillance Workshop

This year’s Annual Surveillance Workshop (ASW) is going virtual. 

Join us online for two half-day sessions on Tuesday 10 June and Wednesday 11 June 2025, as we bring together members of the Plant Surveillance Network Australasia-Pacific (PSNAP) to connect, learn and share. 

The 2025 ASW will focus on general surveillance and surveillance program updates, framed by the theme, Enhancing awareness and empowering progress.

Session 1, Tuesday 10 June 

This session will explore general surveillance, featuring expert speakers and interactive sessions from across government, industry, research and more. Register for session 1.

Session 2, Wednesday 11 June

This session will focus on surveillance program updates, highlighting recent developments, innovations, and lessons learned across jurisdictions. Register for session 2.

ASW is exclusive to PSNAP members. 

New centre to train biosecurity leaders

The European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organisation (EPPO) Global Database provides comprehensive pest-related information. This includes details on over 97,800 species relevant to agriculture, forestry, and plant protection.

New UWA micro-credential: R for environmental and agriculture applications

The University of Western Australia (UWA) is offering an online-only micro-credential designed to introduce learners to data collection and statistical analysis using R and R Studio. The course focuses on techniques for gathering non-market value relevant to environmental and agricultural sciences, economics, and environmental management. 

Thanks to a Microcredentials Pilot grant, the SCIEN505 course is fee-free (eligibility criteria apply).

Image: The interactive map shows where hive inspections have been reported in NSW and the ACT, and where Varroa has been detected.

Track hive health with Varroa mite heat map  

The National Varroa Mite Management Program has launched an interactive heat map that displays hive inspections and detections in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. 

Updated weekly, the map helps beekeepers and authorities monitor the spread of Varroa mite, a notifiable pest. Reporting both positive and negative detections helps build a detailed and accurate representation of Varroa mite presence.  

Visit the National Varroa Mite Management Program website to access the heat map and stay informed about the health of Australia’s bee populations.

(left) Ficus rubiginosa, Agnieszka Kwiecień, 2023 CC BY-SA 4.0
(right) Coprosma repens CC0 1.0

New host detected for PSHB in WA  

The Western Australia Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development has reported creeping mirrorplant (Coprosma repens) and Port Jackson fig (Ficus rubiginosa) plants as hosts of polyphagous shothole borer (PSHB), Euwallacea fornicatus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). 

This is the first report of E. fornicatus infesting creeping mirrorplant and Port Jackson fig. PSHB infests economically important plants, including tea, mango, pomegranate, tamarind and cacao. 

PSHB has been reported from parts of the Middle East, Asia, Oceania, Costa Rica, Panama, Brazil, and Argentina. In the United States, it has been reported from Hawaii, California, and Florida.

Plant Health Student Network launches website and newsletter  

The Plant Health Student Network (PHSN) is a global community run by and for students in the fields of plant health, plant pathology, and plant biosecurity. 

Founded to support early-career professionals, the network connects students across the world through online forums with guest speakers, training workshops, and in-person meetups. It’s designed to help the next generation of plant health experts build skills, share opportunities, and learn from leaders in the field. 

The PHSN recently launched a new website and newsletter to keep members informed about events, scholarships, and opportunities in plant health. 

For more information and to join the network, visit the PHSN website.

Entomology award nominations now open  

The Entomological Society of Victoria is now accepting nominations for the Le Souëf Awards which recognise outstanding contributions to entomology by amateur and early-career scientists. 

The The Le Souëf Memorial Award was established in 1983 to honour the memory of John Cecil Le Souëf, a respected member of the Society. It celebrates amateur entomologists who have made notable contributions to the field of entomology. 

The Society also offers the Le Souëf Emerging Talent Award to promising young or less experienced entomologists. 

Nominations close on 30 September.

For more details, visit the Entomological Society of Victoria’s website.

What we’ve been reading: Plant surveillance news and research  

• Entomology Today: Ants Per Milliliter: New Method Speeds Up Measurement of Fire Ant Populations
• Journal of Economic Entomology: A new nondestructive method for monitoring red imported fire ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) populations in the field
• Journal of Insect Science: Genetic insights into the first detection of Paracoccus marginatus (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) in Australia   
• Microbiology Society: Population-level whole-genome sequencing of Ascochyta rabiei identifies genomic loci associated with isolate aggressiveness  
• Wiley Online Library: Cost-effective portfolio allocation across quarantine, surveillance and eradication using info-gap theory
• Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development: Extra surveillance to test for exotic bee virus 

Career opportunities

Visit the careers page on the PSNAP website to keep up to date with current job and PhD scholarship opportunities.

About the Network

The Plant Surveillance Network Australasia-Pacific (PSNAP) enables members to communicate and share skills in plant pest surveillance. It acts as a coordination point for surveillance professionals and practitioners to strengthen surveillance capacity and capability across Australia, New Zealand and the nearby region. 

The National Plant Biosecurity Surveillance Professional Development and Protocols Projects are coordinated and delivered by Plant Health Australia and are funded by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.