The challenges of monitoring insect sleeper pests: the example of Spodoptera litura in Aotearoa New Zealand

Authors

  • Joanne Jensen AgResearch Ltd https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0588-7718
  • Michael Clearwater University of Waikato
  • Andrew Barnes University of Waikato
  • Sofia Orre-Gordon Plant and Food Research

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33584/jnzg.2025.87.3738

Abstract

Farmers will face a different suite of insect pests under climate change. Monitoring their population dynamics over time is important for risk assessment and mitigation, but it can be expensive and time-consuming. After appropriate quality checks and analyses, data from two online citizen science platforms, iNaturalist and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), indicated higher numbers and an extended geographical range of the representative sleeper pest in Aotearoa New Zealand, Spodoptera litura, in 2018 and 2022-23. This example suggests that these platforms could be a useful tool for future pest monitoring.

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Published

2025-11-07

How to Cite

Jensen, J., Clearwater, M., Barnes, A., & Orre-Gordon, S. (2025). The challenges of monitoring insect sleeper pests: the example of Spodoptera litura in Aotearoa New Zealand. Journal of New Zealand Grasslands, 87, 95–106. https://doi.org/10.33584/jnzg.2025.87.3738

Issue

Section

Volume 87 (2025)

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