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First Report of the Cyst Nematode (Globodera tabacum) Complex on Flue-Cured Tobacco in Spain

The Globodera tabacum complex infects tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) fields in the United States. In August 2001, plants of flue-cured tobacco cv. K326 from a field of the La Vera Region of Spain displayed a premature wilting and yellowing of foliage, but the roots looked healthy. In the laboratory under the microscope, nematode cysts were observed on the roots. At harvest in September 2001, soil and root samples were collected to identify the nematode and to quantify the population in the soil. Identification of the nematode was based on morphological characteristics of second-stage juveniles collected from cysts and perineal patterns of cysts recovered from the roots (2). Cysts were collected from roots, and second-stage juveniles were extracted from crushed cysts. The nematode population was extracted from the soil and quantified as described by Barker (1). The nematode population was identified as Globodera tabacum. Soil density of the nematode was 5,307 cysts per liter of soil, 64,286 eggs per liter of soil, and 16,071 second-stage juveniles per liter of soil. To our knowledge, this is the first report of G. tabacum complex in Spain.

References: (1) K. R. Barker. Nematode extraction and bioassays. Page 19 in: An Advanced Treatise on Meloidogyne. Vol II, Methodology. K. R. Barker, C. C. Carter, and J. N. Sasser, eds. North Carolina State University Graphics, Raleigh, 1985. (2) R. H. Mulvey and A. Morgan Golden, J. Nematol. 15:1, 1983.