Memberships
2016 - Current: Southern African Society for Plant Pathology (SASPP)
2017 - Current: South African Society for Systematic Biology (SASSB)
2025 - Current: Entomological Society of South Africa
Diagnostic Clinic Manager
I am the manager of the TPCP Diagnostic Clinic, responsible for the day-to-day activities of the Diagnostic Clinic. I am responsible for the processing of samples submitted to the TPCP Diagnostic Clinic including the isolation and identification of bacterial and fungal pathogens, as well as the identification on insect pests. I also manage a team of post-graduate students and interns that assist in the duties of the Clinic.
I joined FABI in 2015 as an Honours student working under Prof. Wilhelm de Beer, Dr. Tuan Duong and Prof. Mike Wingfield. I completed both my Honours and master's degrees under the primary supervision of Prof. Wilhelm de Beer and my PhD under the primary supervision of Dr. Tuan Duong co-supervised by Profs. Mike Wingfield and Wilhelm de Beer.
My research has primarily focused on investigating insect-fungal interactions that exist between bark and ambrosia beetles and their fungal associates in the Ophiostomatales, Microascales and Fusarium. However, working on these fungal groups have also led me to do study various plant and tree pathogens. My most recent research has been focused on finding biological control methods against the polyphagous shot hole borer (PSHB - Euwallacea fornicatus). This involved investigating various biological control approaches including entomopathogenic fungi, mycoparasites, and parasitoids. I was also involved in establishing a successful rearing colony of PSHB that could be used in future research on this pest.
2016 - Current: Southern African Society for Plant Pathology (SASPP)
2017 - Current: South African Society for Systematic Biology (SASSB)
2025 - Current: Entomological Society of South Africa
2025
W.J. NEL,T.A. DUONG, S. FELL, D.A. HERRON, T. PAAP, M.J. WINGFIELD, Z.W. DE BEER, J. HULCR, A.J. JOHNSON
The diversity of bark and ambrosia beetles in South Africa (Oral Presentation).
24th Congress of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa
W.J. NEL, I. BARNES, S. JALI, F. IMPSON, R.G. OBERPRIELER, B.P. HURLEY
First report of Melanterius inconspicuus on black wattle in South Africa, with observations of its development (Poster Presentation).
24th Congress of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa
2024
W.J. NEL,I. BARNES, B. SLIPPERS, L. DE VOS, B.P. HURLEY
Development of improved molecular tools for pathogen diagnostics (Poster Presentation).
ICFR Forestry Science Symposium, November 2024.
W.J. NEL, B. SLIPPERS, L. DE VOS, M.J. WINGFIELD, I. BARNES, B.P. HURLEY
35 years of the TPCP Diagnostics Clinic: Learning from the past to build for the future (Poster presentation).
53rd Congress of the Southern African Society of Plant Pathology, February 2024.
W.J. NEL,B. SLIPPERS, M.J. WINGFIELD, I. BARNES, T. PAAP, C. RANDOLPH, B.P. HURLEY
Six species of Fusarium identified from Euwallacea xanthopus infesting Erythrina lysistemontrees in Durban, South Africa, including the description of two new species (Oral Presentation).
53rd Congress of the Southern African Society of Plant Pathology, February 2024.
2022
W.J. NEL, B. SLIPPERS B, M.J. WINGFIELD, N. YILMAZ, B.P. HURLEY
Entomopathogens tested for their efficacy against the invasive polyphagous shot hole borer, Euwallacea fornicatus (Oral Presentation).
International Congress on Invertebrate Pathology and Microbial Control. 54th Annual Meeting of the Society for Invertebrate Pathology. August 2022.
2021
W.J. NEL, Z.W. DE BEER, M.J. WINGFIELD, T.A. DUONG
Using phylogenomic analyses to resolve taxonomic ambiguity and the: The description
of two new genera in the Ophiostomatales (Oral Presentation).
Joint SASSB Webinar Series/FABI International Seminar Series 01.07.2021
2020
W.J. NEL, Z.W. DE BEER, M.J. WINGFIELD, T.A. DUONG
Ophiostomatoid fungi associated with ambrosia beetles in South Africa, including two new species (Virtual presentation of graphical abstract).
MSA from the Cloud, MSA virtual meeting, July 2020.
2019
W.J. NEL, Z.W. DE BEER, M.J. WINGFIELD, T.A. DUONG
Bark and ambrosia beetles from South Africa’s natural forests (Poster Presentation).
IUFRO WG 7.03.12 ‘Biocontrol of Forest Insect Pests and Pathogens’
W.J. NEL, B.D. WINGFIELD, A.R. McTAGGART, M.J. WINGFIELD, Z.W.DE BEER, H.J. LIM, M.A. VAN DER NEST, T.A. DUONG
Genomic patterns of convergently evolved bark and ambrosia beetle associated fungi reveal patterns of genome reduction and gene loss (Oral Presentation).
51st Congress of the Southern African Society for Plant Pathology (SASPP)
W.J. NEL,T.A. DUONG, A. HAMMERBACHER, B.D. WINGFIELD, M.J. WINGFIELD, Z.W. DE BEER
Berkeleyomyces basicola and Berkeleyomyces rouxiae: Black root-rot pathogens of globally important crop plants (Poster Presentation).
51st Congress of the Southern African Society for Plant Pathology (SASPP).
2018
W.J. NEL, B.D. WINGFIELD, A. MCTAGGART, M.J. WINGFIELD, Z.W. DE BEER, H-J. LIM, M. VAN DER NEST, T.A. DUONG
Genomic basis of convergent evolution in beetle-associated Sordariomycete fungi (Oral Presentation)
Joint conference of the South African Society for Bioinformatics and the South African Genetics Society (SASBi/SAGS)
W.J. NEL, T.A. DUONG, A. HAMMERBACHER, B.D. WINGFIELD, M.J. WINGFIELD, Z.W. DE BEER
Taxonomy and mating strategy of Thielaviopsis basicola, a globally important pathogen of agricultural crops (Poster Presentation).
International Mycological Congress (IMC), San Juan, Puerto Rico.
W.J. NEL, T.A. DUONG, A. HAMMERBACHER, B.D. WINGFIELD, M.J. WINGFIELD, Z.W. DE BEER
Cryptic heterothallic mating system discovered in the important root pathogens previously known as Thielaviopsis basicola (Oral Presentation. Awarded: Best lightning presentation).
South African Association of Botanists (SAAB) Conference.
W.J. NEL,T.A. DUONG, B.D. WINGFIELD, M.J. WINGFIELD, Z.W. DE BEER
A new genus and sister species for the globally important, multi-host root pathogen, Thielaviopsis basicola (Poster Presentation. Awarded: Runner-up best poster).
South African Association of Botanists (SAAB) Conference.
2017
W.J. NEL, T.A. DUONG, B.D. WINGFIELD, M.J. WINGFIELD, Z.W. DE BEER
Multigene sequence data reveals that the root rot pathogen Thielaviopsis basicola constitutes two sister species in a new genus (Oral Presentation).
South African Society for Systematic Biology (SASSB).
W.J. NEL, T.A. DUONG, B.D. WINGFIELD, M.J. WINGFIELD, A. HAMMERBACHER, Z.W. DE BEER
The important root rot pathogen Thielaviopsis basicola shown to be heterothallic (Poster Presentation).
The 29th Fungal Genetics Conference, Asilomar, California, 14- 19 March.
W.J. NEL, T.A. DUONG, B.D. WINGFIELD, M.J. WINGFIELD, Z.W. DE BEER
Multigene sequence analyses reveal a new genus and a new species in a globally important, multi-host root pathogen (Oral Presentation).
50th Congress of the South African Society of Plant Pathology (SASPP)
W.J. NEL, T.A. DUONG, M. POULSEN, D. AANEN, S. VREEBRUG, Z.W. DE BEER
Fungiculous species of Ophiostomatales, including three new species from Termitomycesfungus combs (Poster Presentation).
50th Congress of the South African Society of Plant Pathology (SASPP)
2018: Mentorship award (FABI)
2018: Mentorship student travel award (Mycological Society of America)
2018: Best lightning presentation (SAAB)
2026: JE VanderPlank award (SASPP)
2018-2020: Freestanding Scholarship for Doctoral students (NRF)
2016-2017: Scarce Skills Scholarship for Masters students (NRF)
Nel WJ, Jali S, Barnes I, Wondafrash M, Hurley BP. (2026) Outbreaks of a native jewel beetle, Agrilus grandis (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), on commercial black wattle, Acacia mearnsii, plantations in South Africa. African Entomology 10.17159/2254-8854/2026/a24625
Gürtel ND, Pham NQ, Roux J, Nel WJ, Wingfield BD, Wingfield MJ. (2026) The pine-infesting bark beetle, Cyrtogenius luteus (Coleoptera: Scolytinae), discovered in South Africa. African Entomology 10.17159/2254-8854/2026/a27477
Nel WJ, Barnes I, Jali S, Impson F, Oberprieler RG, Hurley BP. (2025) First report of Melanterius inconspicuus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Cleogonini) from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, with observations of its development in black wattle. Southern Forests 10.2989/20702620.2025.2537823
Nel WJ, Duong TA, Fell S, Herron DA, Paap T, Wingfield MJ, de Beer ZW, Hulcr J, Johnson AJ. (2025) A checklist of South African bark and ambrosia beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae, Platypodinae). Zootaxa 10.11646/zootaxa.5648.1.1
Townsend G, Hill M, Hurley BP, Nel WJ, Crous C, Roets F. (2025) First report of the ambrosia beetle, Amasa parviseta (Curculiondae: Scolytinae), in South Africa. African Entomology 10.17159/2254-8854/2025/a24167
Lynn KMT, Wingfield MJ, Tarigan M, Durán A, Santos SA, Nel WJ, Barnes I. (2025) Investigating bark, ambrosia and nitidulid beetle (Coleoptera: Scolytinae and Nitidulidae) communities and their potential role in the movement of Ceratocystis manginecans in commercial forestry plantations in Riau, Indonesia. Agricultural and Forest Entomology 10.1111/afe.12698
Hulcr J, Barnes I, Barnes M, Gazis R, Hammerbacher A, Johnson AJ, Lynch S, Lynn K, Marais GC, Mayers CG, Nel W, Villari C, Wingfield BD, Wingfield MJ. (2025) From forest to fungus: A roadmap to bark beetle mycobiome research. Phytoparasitica 10.1007/s12600-025-01246-x
Nel WJ, Randolph C, Paap T, Hurley BP, Slippers B, Barnes I, Wingfield MJ. (2024) Fusarium species associated with Euwallacea xanthopus in South Africa, including two novel species. Mycologia 10.1080/00275514.2024.2394758
Nel WJ, Slippers B, Wingfield MJ, Yilmaz N, Hurley BP. (2023) Efficacy of commercially available Entomopathogenic agents against the Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer in South Africa. Insects 10.3390/insects14040361
Nel WJ, De Beer ZW, Wingfield MJ, Poulsen M, Aanen DK, Wingfield BD, Duong TA. (2021) Phylogenetic and phylogenomic analyses reveal two new genera and three new species of ophiostomatalean fungi from termite fungus combs. Mycologia 10.1080/00275514.2021.1950455