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Min B Rayamajhi

Plant Pathologist

 

Min Rayamajhi earned his M.S. in botany and Ecology from Tribhuvan University (Kathmandu, Nepal), and MS and Ph.D. in Forest Resources and Conservation from University of Florida, USA. His research career as a scientist began after his Ph.D. in May 1995. Most of Rayamajhi’s research activities revolve around the biological control of invasive plants. His overall research objectives are to develop environmentally safe and compatible methods of invasive weed control, increase availability and deploy biological control agents, and evaluate their impacts on target plants across various scales. The complexity of these objectives require research activities in several steps: 1) Plan, design, supervise and conduct foreign explorations for natural enemies, and ensure safe consignment and maintenance of living specimens under quarantine conditions. 2) Plan, design, and conduct pre-release studies on the biology and ecology of target weeds to facilitate post-release field assessment of the impact of biological control agents. 3) Design and conduct pathogenicity/host acceptance/host range tests and develop approaches that integrate multi-guilds of biological control agents (insects and pathogens) and herbicides as part of integrated pest (plant) management programs. 4) Develop efficient techniques for production and release of biological control agents, identify biotic and abiotic attributes that compromise establishment of biological control agents on target weed populations, develop and deploy improved release strategies for sustained establishment on target weed and monitor weed/agent population dynamics. 5) Coordinate and cooperate with consumer groups in establishment, dispersal and assessment of biological control impact on target weeds.