Michael Gormally

Ollscoil na Gaillimhe – University of Galway | NUI Galway

Wetlands constructed primarily for the treatment of wastewaters have been shown to have a role in enhancing biodiversity. However, while most biodiversity studies of constructed wetlands focus on the larger, more iconic animal groups, there is a paucity of information on the aerial phases of wetland invertebrate species associated with constructed...

Stone walls are ubiquitous field boundaries used to restrict livestock movement or to separate property. Bryophytes and lichens are often the dominant vegetation in dry stone walls and are strongly affected by local microhabitat characteristics. Bryophytes and lichens related metrics can be used to define habitat quality of stone walls. The current...

Lyme borreliosis is a vector-borne disease of concern in Europe. While neuroborreliosis data are reportable at EU level, it can nevertheless be difficult to make comparisons of disease risk between neighbouring countries. This study used proportion meta-analyses to compare environmental markers of disease risk between woodland sites in two countrie...

Agri-Environment Schemes (AES) have long been implemented across Europe to incentivise farmers to alter their management practices to improve biodiversity and water, air and soil quality. However, the cost-effectiveness of traditional action-based schemes has been questioned, and Result-Based Payment (RBP) schemes have been recommended as an altern...

Terrestrial molluscs are frequently exposed to a wide range of temperatures (Ansart & Vernon, 2003), but temperature tolerance studies have focused mainly on land snails (Udaka, Goto & Numata, 2008; Slotsbo, Hansen & Holmstrup, 2011) with fewer studies on terrestrial slugs. The lack of external physical protection offered by a shell and epiphragm m...

Ground beetles are an integral component of biological control in agricultural fields, but information on the species that are present in Oregon and throughout the United States is surprisingly limited. This guide was created as a quick reference for common ground beetles found in grass seed crops in the Willamette Valley. It describes the general...

Interspecific competition plays a major role in organizing biological communities. Competition can involve direct (e.g. aggression) or indirect (e.g. avoidance) interactions, and can influence the behaviour, distribution and fitness of interacting species. Competition appears to be common among marine and terrestrial snail species, but the potentia...

While carabid beetles have been shown to feed on a variety of crop pests, little is known about their species assemblages in US annual ryegrass crops, where invertebrate pests, particularly slugs, lepidopteran larvae and craneflies, incur major financial costs. This study assesses the biological control potential of carabid beetles for autumn- and...

1. While the value of linear farm habitats for the protection and enhancement of farmland biodiversity in general is known, less is understood about their contribution to Diptera, especially those with different ecological requirements. In this study, we examined the impact of a range of linear farm habitats in agricultural grassland on Syrphidae a...

Concerns over the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services in farmland have prompted the development of agri-environment policy measures aimed at reducing farming pressure and maintaining semi-natural habitats in farmed landscapes. However, further knowledge is needed to guarantee successful agri-environment measures implementation. The current...

• Terrestrial slugs are pervasive pests of agriculture throughout temperate regions and have the potential to disrupt the germination of seedlings, cause damage to fruiting bodies of crops, and vector plant pathogens. • Tetanocera elata Fabricius (Diptera: Sciomyzidae), a widely distributed Palaearctic species, is an obligate mesoparasitoid and pre...

Tetanocera elata (Fabricius) (Diptera: Sciomyzidae) is an obligate mesoparasitoid of pestiferous Deroceras spp. slugs in the first and second larval instars and then emerges to become a free-living predator of terrestrial slugs in the third instar. To determine the biological control potential of T. elata, naïve third-instar larvae were exposed to...

Our study investigated the biological control potential of carabid beetles in till and no-till Annual Ryegrass grown for seed in Oregon. Control potential will be evaluated by examining the abundance of carabids in the crop at times when slugs cause most damage and through molecular gut-content analysis. Ten fields were sampled bi-monthly between A...

Recent concern regarding the negative environmental impacts of molluscicides has led to the investigation of safer alternatives for pestiferous slug control. One potential biocontrol agent is Tetanocera elata (Diptera:Sciomyzidae), the larval stage of which feeds on slugs. The pestiferous slug Deroceras reticulatum was exposed to neonate T. elata l...

The intensification of farming practices, along with the loss and fragmentation of semi‐natural habitats within agricultural areas, has contributed significantly to insect decline worldwide including flower‐visiting aculeate Hymenoptera. In this study aculeate Hymenoptera were collected using bi‐directional Malaise traps placed along farmland linea...

While the larval stage of Tetanocera elata (Diptera: Sciomyzidae) is a known parasitoid and predator of pestiferous slugs, its biology and predatory behavior as well as its interaction with slug parasitic nematodes requires further investigation. In this study, survival of larvae fed from the neonate stage on Deroceras reticulatum Müller (a previou...

Habitat diversity is fundamental to the preservation of biodiversity and to the delivery of ecosystem services in farmed landscapes. Acknowledging farms according to habitat composition and configuration is key to ensuring the sustainability of farms; facilitating production goals, but also supporting the protection of biodiversity and associated e...

Pestiferous slugs are a cause of food loss globally. The recent EU banning of chemical methiocarb slug pellets, due to their toxic effects on non-target organisms and concerns regarding water contamination from slug pellets containing metaldehyde, has resulted in increased interest in novel biocontrol agents of pestiferous slugs. While the larval s...

Marsh flies (Diptera: Sciomyzidae) are a diverse family which provide valuable ecosystem services, biological control of agriculturally-pestiferous molluscs. Ongoing research on the species Tetanocera elata Fabricius suggests it may be a suitable natural enemy and biocontrol agent of Deroceras reticulatum Müller, a widely-distributed pest of garden...

Marsh flies are a diverse family that provide valuable ecosystem services, including the biological control of mollusks that are agricultural pests and vectors of animal and human parasitic diseases. In addition, some species may serve as important ecological bioindicators. Despite the extensive research on this family, most have centered on larval...

The EU-protected slug Geomalacus maculosus Allman occurs only in the West of Ireland and in northern Spain and Portugal. We explored the microbial community found within the faeces of Irish specimens with a view to determining whether a core microbiome existed among geographically isolated slugs which could give insight into the adaptations of G. m...

AWARD Student Presentation Award (Best Poster) ABSTRACT Marsh flies (Diptera: Sciomyzidae) are a diverse family which provide valuable ecosystem services, including many species which provide biological control of molluscs which are agricultural pests and vectors of animal and human parasitic diseases. Recent research undertaken at the Applied Eco...

References Slugs are a worldwide pest on a diverse range of important agricultural and horticultural crops, especially in regions that experience a mild and wet climate. For example, in Oregon, damage to grass seed fields by the grey field slug Deroceras reticulatum has accounted for nearly $100 million in damage to this $500 million industry 1. Ca...

Mature exotic Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis; Bong. Carrière)-dominated stands, particularly trees of greater circumference, result in greater numbers ofGeomalacus maculosus(Allman) captures than adjacent clear-felled stands and adjacent peatland with Before-After-Control-Impact-Paired analysis indicating lower catches ofG. maculosuspost-felling.

This poster gives an overview of our mark-recapture study on Geomalacus maculosus and Lehmannia marginata in Cloosh orest, Ireland. Check out our article 'EU-protected slug Geomalacus maculosus and sympatric Lehmannia marginata in conifer plantations: What does mark-recapture method reveal about population densities?' published in the Journal of Mo...

An understanding of the seasonal variation in the standing stock of metals and nutrients in emergent vegetation of constructed wetlands (CWs), as well as the amounts present in aboveground (AG) and belowground (BG) biomass, is crucial to their design and management. Given that biomass harvesting is a labour and time consuming operation, a paucity o...

Given the current decline of natural wetlands worldwide and the consequent negative impacts on amphibians, wetlands constructed for the treatment of wastewaters have the potential to play a role in the protection of these animals. However, there is a paucity of information regarding the value of constructed wetlands (CWs) to amphibians, particularl...

In low intensity agri-ecosystems such as wet grassland habitats, the inclusion of invertebrates in conservation assessments and monitoring is usually limited to charismatic groups such as bees or butterflies. However, wet grasslands support a wide range of inveterate groups, some of which may exhibit limited movement not generally represented by mo...

Background Animal colours and patterns commonly play a role in reducing detection by predators, social signalling or increasing survival in response to some other environmental pressure. Different colour morphs can evolve within populations exposed to different levels of predation or environmental stress and in some cases can arise within the lifet...

Proposed strategies to protect biodiversity within agricultural systems are often based on botanical criteria with plant species richness generally considered the prime indicator of conservation potential. While wet grasslands dominated by rushes (Juncus spp.) are commonly considered to be of lesser ecological value than those which are more botani...

The impact of selected entomopathogenic nematodes and Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita on the EuropeanUnion-protected slug Geomalacus maculosus and the sympatric Lehmannia marginata was investigated. There was no significant difference in mortality between slugs treated with nematodes and their controls. The presence of P. hermaphrodita in two G. macu...

The Kerry Slug, Geomalacus maculosus (Arionidae), which is restricted globally to Ireland and the northern Iberian Peninsula, is protected under European law. The distribution of G. maculosus in Ireland was believed to be confined to the south-west of the country until 2010, when it was discovered in a conifer plantation nearly 200km north of its p...

New records of Tetanocera punctifrons Rondani, 1868 in Ireland are presented. Distinguishing characters from the very similar T. latifibula Frey, 1924 are discussed. The female abdomens of both species are described for the first time. The distributions of both species are summarised. The history of type examinations and of taxonomists' conceptions...

Geomalacus maculosus Allman, 1843 is an EU-protected slug species which is only found in the west of Ireland and northern Iberia. There is little knowledge of its population sizes throughout its range and no long-term studies have been conducted to calculate estimates. Localized populations of G. maculosus and the sympatric slug Lehmannia marginata...

Geomalacus maculosus is a slug species protected under EU law with a distribution limited to the west of Ireland and north-west Iberia. The species, originally thought to be limited within Ireland to deciduous woodland and peatland, has been found in a number of commercial conifer plantations since 2010. While forest managers are now required to in...

Irish Wildlife Manuals is a series of contract reports relating to the conservation management of habitats and species in Ireland. The volumes are published on an irregular basis by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

Allergenic mites are responsible for inducing hypersensitive reactions in genetically predisposed people worldwide. Mites in dust from 30 Irish homes with pets (dogs, n = 23; cats, n = 7) were compared with those in 30 homes without pets. House dust mites constituted 78% of all mites recorded, with Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Acariformes: Pyrog...

Sixty percent of the land surface of the Republic of Ireland is farmland of which up to 12 % is estimated to sustain high species richness. Given that this farmland is predominantly pasture-based, the ecological status of semi-natural grasslands is particularly important for biodiversity. Recent studies indicate that those grasslands with high natu...

High Nature Value ( HNV ) farmland is increasingly important within Europe and effective sampling strategies that collect invertebrates in agricultural wet grassland are vital to gauge the biodiversity in these pockets of high species richness. One group of potential bioindicators of HNV farmland particularly suited to wet grasslands are the marsh...

The slug Geomalacus maculosus is a prominent member of the Lusitanian fauna. As its global distribution is restricted to western Ireland and northern Iberia, it is protected under EU legislation. Nothing is known about the genetic variability and population structure of this species, so, with a special view to shedding light on the origin of the Ir...

House dust mites produce allergens which can cause or aggravate diseases such as asthma, eczema and rhinitis. The objectives of this study are to quantify typical house dust mite and Der p 1 allergen levels in child car seats, and to determine external variables that may influence mite populations in cars. Dust samples were collected from the child...

Background: Clothing is largely presumed as being the mechanism by which house dust mites are distributed among locations in homes, yet little research to date has investigated the capacity with which various clothing fabric types serve as vectors for their accumulation and dispersal. Although previous research has indicated that car seats provide...

The River Shannon, Ireland, among the last unreg-ulated rivers in western Europe, has extensive floodplains and supports rare and endangered species and habitats, of ecolog-ical and cultural importance. Unregulated floodplains result in community composition responding directly to natural fluctu-ations in water level. This study assesses how hydrol...

Large quantities of construction and demolition waste (C&D) are produced globally every year, with little known about potential environmental impacts. In the present study, the slug, Deroceras reticulatum (Mollusca: Gastropoda) was used as the first biomonitor of metals (Ag, As, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cr, Cu, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Se, Ti, Tl, V and Zn) on w...

Active blanket bogs are ombrotrophic peatland systems of the boreo-temperate zones, although blanket peat tends to form only under the warmest and wettest of those conditions. In Europe, this is common only in Scotland and Ireland, coincident with the oceanic climate, and constitutes a significant global component of this ecosystem. Associated with...

The Family Sciomyzidae (Diptera) is one of the best studied groups of malacophagous insects containing some of the most important enemies of slugs. Larvae of the fly Tetanocera elata are known obligate feeders on slugs both as parasitoids and predators. We tested whether predatory larvae of T. elata can feed on the protected slug species Geomalacus...

Examining predatory behaviour is useful for determining the potential of novel biocontrol agents. We investigated the predatory behaviour of Tetanocera elata (Fabricius) larvae on the pestiferous slug Deroceras reticulatum (Müller). Results indicate three prey-finding strategies, including the predator reaching its prey without previous contact wit...

Aim: Understanding the spatial distribution of high priority habitats and developing predictive models using climate and environmental variables to replicate these distributions are desirable conservation goals. The aim of this study was to model and elucidate the contributions of climate and topography to the distribution of a priority blanket bog...

Although wetlands are of ecological and economic importance, they continue to be lost to anthropogenic activities such as infilling. The impacts of wetland infilling with construction and demolition (C&D) waste on wetland plant and dipteran (Insecta: Diptera) communities were examined. Areas of wetland infilled with C&D waste compared to non-infill...

Maintaining biodiversity is central to maintaining ecosystem functionality of wetlands. Hydrology has the strongest influence on wetland biodiversity, second to which agriculture is the most influential factor. This study investigates the influence of hydrology and farming practices on the abundance, species richness and composition of dipteran com...

Active blanket bogs are ombrotrophic peatland systems of the boreo-temperate zones, although blanket peat tends to form only under the warmest and wettest of those conditions. In Europe, this is common only in Scotland and Ireland, coincident with the oceanic climate, and constitutes a significant global component of this ecosystem. Associated with...

Pestiferous slugs in organic and conventional farming systems damage crops, reduce yield and quality, and reduce profits; however, no biological control agent that is both efficacious and inexpensive has yet been developed. One potential biological control agent is the slug-feeding Tetanocera elata (Fab.), for which scant scientific data are curren...

Maintaining biodiversity is central to maintaining ecosystem functionality of wetlands. Hydrology has the strongest influence on wetland biodiversity, second to which agriculture is the most influential factor. This study investigates the influence of hydrology and farming practices on the abundance, species richness and composition of dipteran com...

In this paper we identify host snails of the snail-killing fly Colobaea bifasciella (Fallén, 1820) as determined from shells within which puparia were found in Ireland. Shells were collected from turloughs (primarily ground-water dependent seasonal lakes largely unique to Ireland). C. bifasciella appears to favour small Lymnaeidae. In two cases, a...

Sustainable agriculture and the provision of environmental public goods are key deliverables for European farming and food production. Farmland biodiversity, cultural landscapes, soil functionality and climate stability are among the environmental public goods provided through agriculture. Future Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) direct payments are...

The climate envelope modelling described in this report represents a staged investigation into the possible impacts of climate change on the nature conservation resources of Ireland. It represents a significant piece of original research applying state-of-the- art methods for the first time in Ireland, and is an important step in trying to understa...

Abstract 1) We investigated factors affecting wetland carabid diversity and assemblage dynamics as part of the first national survey in the Republic of Ireland. 2) Species richness was significantly different among habitat types and was significantly higher on designated as opposed to undesignated land. However, red-data-book species richness was s...

Coastal dune systems are particularly susceptible to destabilisation through recreational pressure and because of this, conflicts frequently arise between those who want to use the dunes for recreational purposes and those who wish to see these fragile ecosystems protected. In addition, a range of approaches to resolving this conflict are being use...