Approach to blue stain fungi on ISPM 15‐certified wood
packaging in Australia
1Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry 1Blue Stain Fungi –
wood packagingBiosecurity Plant Division
Authors:ChristopherHoward,LeisaPorter,VanessaBrake,JenniferMorrisonandBerndSunderhauf
Presenter:DavidLetham
Blue Stain of WoodCausedbydematiaceous fungithatinfectthesapwoodoftrees.
Stainingusuallyoccursafterfelling.
SeveralmorphologicallysimilarfungalgeneraareassociatedwithBlueStain:
• Ophiostoma,Ceratocystis, Leptographium,&afewothers;
• Allcharacterisedbylong‐neckedperithecia.
2Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry 2Blue Stain Fungi –
wood packagingBiosecurity Plant Division
Blue Stain of WoodBSFareinsectvectored– barkbeetles
3Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry 3Blue Stain Fungi –
wood packagingBiosecurity Plant Division
Indicative size of bark beetle
Blue Stain of WoodActivebluestainfungi– perithecia
4Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry 4Blue Stain Fungi –
wood packagingBiosecurity Plant Division
Wood PackagingAllwoodpackagingforcommoditiesimportedtoAustraliamustbetreatedasoutlinedinISPM15.Mostcommontreatmentsare:
HeatTreatment(56° 30mins);orMethylBromidefumigatation.
Materialhastobebarkfree(withintolerances)
5Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry 5Blue Stain Fungi –
wood packagingBiosecurity Plant Division
Blue Stain of Wood Packaging2004– AustraliaadoptedISPM15standardforwood
packaging
2008‐
BAconsultedbyAQISaboutBSFonwoodpackaging.BAadvisedthatISPM15‐certifiedwoodpackagingwithactiveBlueStainFungi(peritheciaobserved)shouldbeactionedduetopathogenicspecieswithintheBlueStaincomplex
2009–concernswereraisedwithinAQISduetothelarge volumeofactionableitems.
Present– GrainsandForestrywereaskedtoreviewcurrentadviceonactivebluestainfungi.
6Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry 6Blue Stain Fungi –
wood packagingBiosecurity Plant Division
Blue Stain of Wood PackagingIssuesfacingDAFFregardingpolicy:
• WhatBSFspeciesAustraliahas,nativeorestablished,isuncertain
• Morphologicalidentificationtimeconsuming• Molecularmethodsreliantonaccuratedatabases• Withoutimportationofvector,woodpackagingisprobablynotapathway‐ discussedatIFQRG2011• Unknownwhatrolenativebarkbeetlesmayplay
7Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry 7Blue Stain Fungi –
wood packagingBiosecurity Plant Division
Brisbane visitOutcomes:
• WoodpackagingwithBSFisverycommon;
• Highlightedtheinconsistencieswithinspections;
• Noquickwaytoidentifyfungitospecies;
•
PlantPathologiststhatareaskedfordiagnosis‘erronthesideofcaution’
whenperitheciaare
observed.
8Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry 8Blue Stain Fungi –
wood packagingBiosecurity Plant Division
Identification of biosecurity risk to Australia
9Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry 9Blue Stain Fungi –
wood packagingBiosecurity Plant Division
Researchisrequiredtofullydetermineifthereisariskto Australia.
i.e.WhatspeciesofBSFdoesAustraliahave?WhatspeciesofBSFaredetectedonwoodpackaging?And,isthereapotentialfornativebarkbeetlevectorstotransferthefungifromthewood?
Someofthisresearchhasbegun.
Ophiostoma floccosum
Ophiostoma quercus
Ophiostoma piceae
Ophiostoma piceae
Ophiostoma piceae
Ophiostoma piliferum
Phylogentic analysis (beta tubulin gene) placed most of these isolates with known blue stain fungi species.
23 isolates of blue stain fungi were obtained from wood packaging entering Australiawith active blue stain fungi were obtained during a workshop in 2011.
Australia’s current policy on blue stain fungi
Actioningofcertifiedwoodpackaginghasbeenceased.
Asmoreinformationbecomesavailable,DAFFbiosecuritymayreviewtherisktoAustraliaforalltimbertodetermineifatechnicaljustificationforactioningofbluestainfungionwoodpackagingisrequired.
11Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Forestry 11Blue Stain Fungi –
wood packagingBiosecurity Plant Division