FABI researchers Drs Jeff Garnas and Brett Hurley joined collaborators Ms Flora Krivak-Tetley and Dr Sandy Liebhold in Hogsback, Eastern Cape to investigate infestations of the Sirex woodwasp, Sirex noctilio. This forms part of an international collaboration funded by the USDA and led by Ms Krivak-Tetley (PhD candidate at Dartmouth College, USA, under the supervision of Prof Matt Ayres) and involving researchers from the USA, Spain, Argentina and South Africa. The project aims to obtain a better understanding of the factors driving the population dynamics of the Sirex woodwasp, an insect that has become one of the most serious global insect pests of pine. Special thanks to Amathole Forestry Company for providing accommodation and for their assistance in the field.