✈️ Travelling during the holidays? Don’t risk bringing back plant and animal products that may be contaminated. 🦠 Watch our animation to understand how contaminated products could cause disease spread in Great Britain. ➡️ youtu.be/D1lzg1x7gH4

You can read more about the @epicscotland.bsky.social work by @spcatterall.bsky.social study www.bioss.ac.uk/case-studies...

On 3 October, EPIC attended the third annual ENRA Conference. EPIC research that delivers impact across Scotland was showcased at our exhibitor stand, and through a presentation and poster. Access conference coverage and materials on our news page ➡️ www.epicscotland.org/news/epic-at...

📸 Camera traps are helping to identify the potentially significant role wildlife could have in transmitting diseases, including African swine fever, to livestock. 🐖 Access the news story ➡️ www.epicscotland.org/news/concern...

🚨 UK egg producers 🚨 Complete our survey by 31 October to tell EPIC and SRUC @ravicinverness.bsky.social scientists what data you collect and how it is kept. 🐓 Access the survey ➡️ www.epicscotland.org/news/uk-egg-...

A phylogenetic model of African Swine Fever virus (ASFV) genotype II identifies introductions of the virus worldwide. 🌍 Scientists from EPIC and @roslininstitute.bsky.social, highlight a need to expand genomic surveillance of ASFV. Access the publication ➡️ doi.org/10.1101/2025...

Planning to travel outside the UK? ✈️ Don’t risk bringing back restricted animal and plant products, such as pork or seeds, as they could host harmful pathogens. EPIC and @planthealthscot.bsky.social produced an animation showing the risks: youtu.be/92y4gdX5-Ms

EPIC’s Lucy Gilbert led a workshop which revealed the challenges the Scottish #livestock industry is facing due to the rise of ticks and tick-borne diseases.

📢 The draft version of the 2027-32 ENRA Research Strategy is now available for public consultation. The programme covers a broad range of issues critical to Scotland's environmental and agricultural futures. Give your views to inform the strategy’s development ➡️ consult.gov.scot/environment-...

Using supporting EPIC resources, @dundee.ac.uk MSc Medical Art Masters student Mary Jo Eden, makes information on avian influenza more accessible for poultry keepers and communities. Access her bird flu guide and 3D model ➡️ bird-flu-guide.weebly.com

Last week, EPIC scientists facilitated a workshop to explore data ethics and evaluate potential applications of artificial intelligence in animal disease modelling. Professor Sam Lycett from @roslininstitute.bsky.social is developing a report based on the workshop’s findings.

🐄 Livestock keepers in or near bluetongue control zones are concerned about the direct impact of the disease, the indirect impacts on farm businesses and the mental health of farmers. Access the recent EPIC report ➡️ www.epicscotland.org/resources/re...

🚨 UK egg producers 🚨 Complete our survey by 31 July to tell EPIC and SRUC @ravicinverness.bsky.social scientists what data you collect and how it is kept. 🐓

As bluetongue restriction zones change, use the ‘Bluetongue Movements Checker’ for correct advice and requirements to move animals within or across a border in Great Britain. Access the interactive tool ➡️ ruminanthw.org.uk/bluetongue-v...

Calling all UK egg producers! Complete a survey to help EPIC and @srucnews.bsky.social @ravicinverness.bsky.social scientists assess if there is enough data available to design prediction models that alert egg producers to flock problems. 🐓 Access the survey ➡️ www.epicscotland.org/news/uk-egg-...

Today, EPIC and @planthealthscot.bsky.social launched an animation explaining the risks of bringing animal and plant products into Great Britain. Watch the animation here ➡️ edin.ac/4kMtsqy

Our Iain McKendrick is at the Royal Highland Show 2025 to launch a new public information film. It warns about the risks from bringing animal and plant products into Scotland. 🧀🥩✈️ 🎦Watch here: www.epicscotland.org/resources/an... @epicscotland.bsky.social @planthealthscot.bsky.social @hutton.ac.uk

'Think before you pack and don't bring it back' 🧳⛱️ Come along to our event at the Royal Highland Show with @epicscotland.bsky.social on 20th June at 1pm We will be showcasing our new animation 📽️ Talks from scientists @epicscotland.bsky.social @srucnews.bsky.social and @hutton.ac.uk

We’re here at the Royal Highland Show today and tomorrow. 🐄 🐖🐓 Stop by our stall in the Scottish Government marquee to learn about our new #animation, and try identifying #animals in our camera trap photos for a sweet reward!

Midge traps placed on farms allow EPIC researchers to study active times and diversity of #midge populations across #Scotland. Watch BBC’s Landward starting at 03:15 to learn how this project helps determine risk periods for #Bluetongue virus ➡️ www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

Historic Bluetongue (BTV-3) cases in cattle have limited the movement of livestock in England. Early EPIC modelling work reported that higher temperatures lead to larger outbreaks of BTV-3 but impacts to Scotland are minimal ➡️ edin.ac/3ZnmVtC

Dr David Ewing recently spoke about the Mosquito #Scotland project, which will help scientists monitor future changes in #mosquito populations and assess mosquito-borne #disease risk. Listen to David’s interview on BBC Sounds - from 30:52 ➡️ www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Watch EPIC’s cross-border #livestock movement analyses work receive a mention at the Scottish industry #Bluetongue virus webinar. Neil Wilson, Institute of Auctioneers and Appraisers in #Scotland, discusses potential #trade impacts of #BTV movement restrictions ➡️ youtu.be/48aCElM09W8?...

Hello! Great to meet you 👋 I'm new to Bluesky, but very happy to be here 💙 I'm based at @bioss.bsky.social, working as part of the @epicscotland.bsky.social consortium on Bayesian Inference approaches for stochastic epidemic modelling.

Check out this talk from our Dr Stephen Catterall at the recent @epicscotland.bsky.social Conference. 🦠🐖📊 #AnimalDisease #DataScience #Statistics

Can #AI tools be used to build trust? 💭 #Privacy Enhancing #Technology could help maximise #data reuse and build #trust in decision-making processes. Watch the full talk from Chief Data Officer at Scottish Government, Tom Wilkinson, at EPIC Conference 2025. ➡️ youtu.be/vSYX4iEhrBU

Watch Miruna Clinciu from Edinburgh Centre for #Robotics present, "Taming the Black Box: Explainable #AI for #OneHealth," at EPIC Conference 2025 ➡️ youtu.be/8bci8Nft8oA

While modelling the spatial spread of #AnimalDisease with limited #data, the iPAR approach can help fill a gap to ensure we are prepared for future #disease outbreaks. Watch Dr Stephen Catterall from @bioss.bsky.social, speak at EPIC Conference 2025 ➡️ youtu.be/6-FpBdWi80Q?...

#MachineLearning approaches can offer cost and time efficiencies when diagnosing Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) cases. Access Niamh Mimnagh’s full presentation on predicting #outbreaks of BVD for Irish #cattle herds, on our conference playlist ➡️ www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...

Thank you to Jenny Capon for creating a graphic #illustration, capturing key topics and themes discussed at EPIC Conference 2025. Is there a topic that you want to learn more about? Access the conference summary and full session recordings in our latest news post. 🔗 edin.ac/4lfj7UI

Demonstrating data-driven #innovation in EPIC’s research, Dr Sibylle Mohr presented her work at EPIC Conference 2025. Access her full talk on using #livestock movement data for effective decision-making on #bluetongue control ➡️ youtu.be/zAPSFKQHZ80

EPIC Conference 2025 gathered #scientists, #livestock industry stakeholders, and #policymakers to explore current and future uses of Data-Driven Innovation (DDI) in the livestock industry and other #OneHealth sectors. Access all session recordings in our latest news story ➡️ edin.ac/4lfj7UI

Today, EPIC scientist Gianluigi Rossi facilitated a #workshop on New #Technologies and Advances to tackle African Swine Fever, with six invited speakers from across the UK, Spain, Italy, and Germany. Thank you to other supporters @roslininstitute.bsky.social and BBSRC.

How exciting for the @planthealthscot.bsky.social to be on #Bluesky to connect with the #science community on #planthealth. Follow us to keep up to date on #planthealth research, events and project calls. 🌱🌷🌳

Islanders met in Inverness last month for the first Pan-Island Network meeting to discuss #animal #disease control and develop action plans for the #Scottish islands. Learn about the EPIC facilitators and ongoing work that built the foundation for this meeting www.epicscotland.org/news/buildin...

It was great to hear from EPIC and @bioss.bsky.social scientists Stephen Catterall and Giles Innocent at EPIC Conference 2025 last week. Their work in EPIC is closely tied to data-driven #innovation, and they offered insights on alternative ways to approach dealing with #data sets. 📊

Our Giles Innocent presented at the 2025 @epicscotland.bsky.social Conference, contributing to key discussions on using data-driven research to improve animal health and welfare. 🐄🐑📈

In our first session of day two, we explore how EPIC is using data-driven #innovation. Giles Innocent from @bioss.bsky.social explains #data issues in models, and the proposed 'gold standard' of data in the event of an outbreak. He asks if models should work at the #animal rather than #farm level.

Yesterday, Tom Wilkinson, Chief Data Officer at Scottish Government was our second keynote, discussing AI opportunities and challenges. He shared the ethics of using AI, and applications of Machine Vision used in the NHS and Marine Scotland, which could be considered in the #livestock sector.

Our first keynote of the EPIC conference is Professor Christos Tachtatzis from the University of Strathclyde. He explained how #cameras and machine vision can be used to replicate and extend, existing sensors to democratise #digitalisation and collect #data on #livestock. 🐄

EPIC Conference 2025 has begun at the John McIntyre Conference Centre. We look forward to sharing ideas about data-driven innovation in #policy and #practice to build a resilient future for #animal health and welfare.🐑🐖🐄🐓