Author
Kim Canavan
K.Canavan@ru.ac.za
Centre for Biological Control, Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, South Africa
Afromontane Research Unit and Department of Plant Sciences, University of the Free State, South Africa
Coauthors
Grant Douglas Martin, Centre for Biological Control, Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, South Africa, and
Afromontane Research Unit and Department of Plant Sciences, University of the Free State, South Africa
Gerald Chikowore, Centre for Biological Control, Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, South Africa
Abstract
In South Africa, eight Pinus species are considered invasive and have been targeted for management efforts. The area that is currently most at threat is the biodiverse Cape Floristic Region (CFR), an area that supports high floral diversity of which 68.3% of species are endemic. The increased spread of wilding pines from plantations has resulted in large parts of the CFR being transformed into Pinus dominated forests. Government funding was allocated to their control since the 1970s which included exploring the potential for biological control. Given the value of pines to the forestry industry, two requirements were set: 1) only cone-feeding agents be considered to protect timber production; and 2) only three Mediterranean Pinus species (Pinus pinaster, P. halepensis. and P. pinea L.) could be targeted. A promising weevil, Pissodes validirostris was found to be host-specific to the target pines, however the project was shelved in 2009 due to concerns for the agent’s potential to assist in spreading a pine pitch canker fungus. In 2022, this research was reinitiated with the aim of finalising the host specificity testing of P. validirostris and moving towards petitioning for the release of this agent. Here we present on the history of this research and the complexity of running biocontrol programmes on species with conflicts of interest and opposing interests across stakeholder groups.
keywords
Biocontrol
Cape Floristic Region
Conflicts of interest
Pissodes validirostris
Highlights
Wilding pines are transforming the biodiverse cape floristic region and biological control is needed
The biological control programme on pines was previously shelved due to concerns from the Forestry
Renewed efforts have begun which includes strong collaboration across all stakeholders