Flavia Occhibove

Centre for Ecology and Hydrology

Projects

Project Lead: Daniel Chapman
Xylella fastidiosa is a bacterial plant pathogen that can cause disease in a broad range of hosts. There are currently major Xylella outbreaks in Southern France, including Corsica, Italy, mainland Spain and the Balearic Islands. Although Xylella has so far not been detected in Scotland (or UK), an outbreak would have serious impacts on any host plant-related activities/businesses and the wider environment. To understand the risk posed to Scotland’s plants from Xylella, and to be adequately prepared if it is detected, there are important knowledge gaps that must be addressed. This project will build on the results of the previous PHC Xylella projects (PHC2018 / 04 /05 / 06) to further refine Scottish Government’s contingency and preparedness measures for the possible arrival of Xylella fastidiosa.

Impact: Deliver recommendations as to the suitability of vector trapping methods and eradication strategies, if deployed in Scotland.

Publications

Forestry, Horticulture, Agriculture, Environment | Final Report and Policy Document

Improving knowledge of Xylella fastidiosa vector ecology: modelling vector occurrence and abundance in the wider landscape in Scotland

May 2022

If introduced to the UK, the insect-vectored, bacterial plant pathogen Xylella fastidiosa could be a serious threat to trees and other plants. There is a lack of knowledge about the ecology and distributions of Xylella vectors in Scotland and the potential effects of this on any outbreak of the disease, which this project aimed to address.