Bluetongue 3 is spreading across Europe. I have confirmed the virus in one animal imported with other cattle which are negative to Devon. This animal has been culled and the others will be repeat tested. This is our standard post import practice.

What could the future of pest management look like? Instead of shooting insecticides all over the field, Sam Cook suggests lasers instead… Machine learning could help identify pests and their natural enemies in the field, reducing the use of insecticides. #Resistance2024

Rothamsted Research More about this work here with FaunaPhotonics nature.com/articles/s4159… And updated related work Emily Bick, Ph.D. scijournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.10…

Teaser: we have now a paper in press about the mitogenome of this flatworm (+ other genes + phylogeny) Stay tuned! 😀

🚨Reminder: Tomorrow, Tuesday 22nd at 17:00 is the last chance to register for the Future Plant Health Responders event hosted by the SIPP & EntoSocIRE happening this Friday, 25th, at Oak Park, Carlow. 🎟️Secure your tickets now: eventbrite.ie/e/future-plant…

⚠️ New Pest Alert! IPSN released a pest alert poster on the🪱 New Guinea flatworm –a highly invasive alien species already found in botanic gardens in the British Virgin Islands Download the alertposter here 👇 & stay vigilant bgci.org/wp/wp-content/… #Biosecurity #PlantHealth

We’re extremely saddened by the news that BVA Past President Prof. Simon Doherty has passed away. A highly respected & internationally recognised expert in his field, Simon was a passionate advocate of the role of vets in championing sustainability. 1/3 bva.co.uk/news-and-blog/…

Air monitoring station records biggest ever jump in atmospheric CO2 newscientist.com/article/246440…

"The Department of Agriculture employs entomologists, botanists and mycologists — experts in insects, plants and fungi, respectively — who inspect agricultural products for pests and pathogens. Many of those specialists were also let go on Friday." nytimes.com/2025/02/19/hea…

🧪An “Omics Days” Conference is taking place at AFBI next week from Tues 25th - Thurs 27th March. What are “Omics” studies? Come along and find out! 📅Registration is still open: bit.ly/the_omics_days

AFBI Employment Opportunity: Head of Pest & Pathogen Surveillance, based at AFBI HQ, Newforge Lane, Belfast. For more information and to apply visit bit.ly/4iHjXb6. Closing Date 12 noon on 18.04.25. #AFBIScience #AFBIResearch

Day 2 of the AFBI “Omics Days” Conference is underway at AFBI Newforge. AFBI's Michael Stevenson from the Organising Team tells us what to expect on Day 2: #The_Omics_Days #AFBIScience #AFBIResearch Ulster University Queen's University Belfast 🎓 DAERA Dept of Agriculture, Food and the Marine London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

Day 2 of the “Omics Days” Conference included a panel session "How Omics are improving Agri-food systems and environmental research" and talks around Omics fields and key research areas in AFBI and the broader research landscape. Back tomorrow for the final day! #The_Omics_Days

Thinking of you all today 💓

Now Hiring: Head of Pest & Pathogen Surveillance – AFBI Newforge (Grade 7) | Agri-Food & Biosciences Institute, Northern Ireland: Belfast, United Kingdom | joburl.ws/21185536 #jobs

Today the Team from the Soil Nutrient Health Scheme AFBI_Soils are exhibiting at the Ballymoney Show. Visit the stand for more information on registering for the scheme and to hear about the training that is available. #AFBIScience #AFBIResearch #SNHS_NI

DAERA Minister Andrew Muir MLA has permitted the voluntary use of three Bluetongue Serotype 3 (BTV-3) vaccines in Northern Ireland, subject to licensing. More info: daera-ni.gov.uk/news/minister-…

At a recent visit organised by DAERA Mark Wilson & David Craig AFBI & leading UK researchers shared knowledge/insights into threats into the ongoing threats from Phytophthora ramorum and Phytophthora pseudosyringae in Regen Larch within N. Ireland forestry compartments.

Our new paper, now in press, reports the unexpected discovery of 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗮𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗹𝗮𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘀. 🧪 Which parasites? Stay tuned to know more - it's even more unexpected 😀. In press in parasite-journal.org

Notre nouvel article sous presse rapporte la découverte inattendue de 𝗱𝗲𝘂𝘅 𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲̀𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗱𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘇 𝗱𝗲𝘀 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗮𝗵𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀. Quels parasites ? Attendez que ce soit publié... c'est encore plus