Open AccessWhat's buzzing? A snapshot analysis of pest notifications
Author(s) -
P. R. C. Doddala,
J. M. Haw,
Diane Anderson,
Milen Marinov,
Alan Flynn
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
proceedings of the new zealand weed and pest control conference/new zealand plant protection/proceedings of the ... national weeds conference/proceedings of the new zealand weed control conference/proceedings of the new zealand plant protection conference
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 0370-2804
pISSN - 0370-0968
DOI - 10.30843/nzpp.2018.71.203
Subject(s) - publicity , biology , hotline , christian ministry , pest analysis , population , ecology , environmental health , business , horticulture , political science , engineering , medicine , telecommunications , marketing , law
The Ministry for Primary Industries' PHELs receive many notifications each year of pests suspected of being new to New Zealand. Most notifications are received through the Ministry's free Pest and Disease Hotline and are an important source of surveillance data. During the period January 2015-February 2018, PHELs received ~9400 notifications, with each March the busiest (1,160) period. Fifty-one percent of notifications came from Auckland, Waikato or the Bay of Plenty. The brown soldier bug, Cermatulus nasalis, was the most frequently reported (483) invertebrate. Publicity campaigns targeting specific pests (e.g. brown marmorated stink bug), past incursion-response publicity (e.g. fruit flies, termites) and "strange-looking" invertebrate notifications are all reflected in the organisms reported. Excluding targeted campaigns and incursion responses, guava moth, Coscinoptycha improbana (181; ~2%), was the most frequently reported, followed by the three-lined hover fly, Helophilus seelandicus (97; ~1%). Spiders, as a group, were reported in considerable numbers (14.4%). Ant samples were frequently submitted (9.1%). These data indicate the number of notifications geographically is proportional to human-population levels. These results will assist PHEL in planning and engaging in future surveillance initiatives.