Biosecurity is the process of detecting and controlling unwanted crop weeds, pests and diseases. Agriculture and the natural environment are...
This article has been republished from The Conversation under Creative Commons licence CC BY-ND 4.0 and is written by Dr Angela (Ang) McGaughran, Senior Lecturer in...
Research led by Victoria University of Wellington’s Dr Monica Gerth in collaboration with iwi has discovered molecules from New Zealand native plants could hold the solution...
Our planet has life on it, and for that reason, it may be unique in the universe. Ironically enough, we know much more about some of...
New Zealand might be an island nation, but that doesn’t stop us from having to deal with a variety of unwanted organisms that find their way...
Noho tahi ai ngā hekaheka, ngā tipu me ngā hanga oreore ki te poho o Tāne-mahuta. Ka mutu, he mahi nui anō ka kawea e tēnā,...
Fungi, plants, and animals live together in Tāne-mahuta, and all have important roles to play. Fungi live with plant roots, helping the plant to get minerals...
Myrtle rust is a disease caused by the fungus Austropuccinia psidii. It threatens plants in the Myrtaceae (myrtle) family. New Zealand has a variety of native...
In November 2010, the bacterium Pseudomonas syringae pv. Actinidiae (Psa) was discovered in a Te Puke kiwifruit orchard. Psa had previously decimated kiwifruit crops in other...
Farming is a way of life in New Zealand – about half the country’s land is used for primary production. New Zealand Trade and Enterprise reports...
The Auckland Islands are often described as a hotspot of biodiversity, with a wide variety of seabirds, invertebrates and marine mammals and a range of hardy...
Our native forests – ngahere – have complex ecosystems. Within the wider ecosystems are smaller ecosystems, such as the one formed around honeydew. Honeydew is a...
In early April 2014, a solitary male Queensland fruit fly (Bactrocera tryoni) was found in a biosecurity surveillance trap in the Parihaka area of Whangarei. The...
On 8 October 2013, Landcare Research’s invertebrate ecologist Dr Shaun Forgie announced the release of two new species of dung beetles, Onthophagus taurus and Onthophagus binodus,...
Research by Plant & Food scientists is aiming to breed kiwifruit cultivars that show resistance to the pathogen Psa. Listen to this RNZ audio, Psa-resistant kiwifruit,...
Scientists around New Zealand have been working on how to combat the highly virulent pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. actinidiae (Psa) – a bacterial disease that has...
Introduced Chinese weevils, Cleopus japonicus, are laying waste to large patches of buddleia in the Bay of Plenty, much to the relief of forest growers and...
In November 2010, kiwifruit growers discovered a highly contagious vine-killing canker, Pseudomonas syringae pv actinidiae (Psa), that affects the vine of the kiwifruit but not the...
The complete genome of the pea aphid was published in 2010, with help from a team of New Zealand researchers. This 6-year project, involving scientists from...
After the success of offshore islands in protecting our native species, mainland islands were introduced and have proved to be a successful conservation strategy. The process...
This timeline provides look at some of the historical aspects of saving our reptiles and amphibians and other species, the impacts on them by humans, and...
Excrement-loving dung beetles, rolling their balls of animal poo across the ground, could one day become a familiar sight on New Zealand farms. These unlikely critters...
Throughout human existence we have relied on the oceans – for food, as a waste dump, for recreation, for economic opportunities and so on. However, it’s...
In July 2009, MAF Biosecurity New Zealand officials announced a significant milestone in their efforts to eradicate the southern saltmarsh mosquito (Ochlerotatus camptorhyncus) from New Zealand....
Fishing is a very important industry in New Zealand, and we have one of the largest territorial waters in the world. This timeline provides a look...
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