131956Interpreting Culicoides Biting Midge Data for Real-Time Reporting and Risk AssessmentClosedFeasibility StudiesInnovate UKThis project will investigate the development of a new level of innovation for an insect-population mapping system; specifically, the Scottish Midge Forecast. We will address issues of cost and reporting time by establishing a large, low-cost network of biological data collection, together with the application of imaging algorithms to produce real-time mapping of insect activity. The technology innovation will have applications in enhancing the visitor experience in an area where tourism contributes significantly to the economy, in addition to being a prototype system for subsequent development of a monitoring/first alert system for important midge-transmitted diseases of livestock, which are considered to be increasing and realistic threats to the UK. The proposed innovation would be the first real-time reporting system for a non-crop pest, with applications on both a UK and international scale.