Jon Sullivan on Nostr: I saw my first myrtle rust in Christchurch this afternoon (while at a dance ...

I saw my first myrtle rust in Christchurch this afternoon (while at a dance performance of my daughter’s). This is the 24th confirmed observation on #iNaturalist of this pathogen in Canterbury.

The Brazilian pathogen attacks, and can kill, trees in the Myrtle family (like pohutukawa, rata, and eucalyptus) and is an invasive pathogen worldwide. It arrived in NZ, in Northland, in May 2017.

I found it on a planted ramarama hybrid.

https://inaturalist.nz/observations/254375009

#InvasiveSpecies #pathogen #NZ