Transmission of Pine Wood Nematode to Cut Timber and Girdled Trees. M. J. Wingfield, Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul 55108. Plant Dis. 67:35-37. Accepted for publication 10 May 1982. Copyright 1983 American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/PD-67-35.

The pine wood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, was recovered from Austrian pine (Pinus nigra), jack pine (P. banksiana), and red pine (P. resinosa) logs 4 mo after they had been cut from healthy trees that did not contain nematodes. B. xylophilus was found only in logs in which cerambycid beetles had oviposited. Similarly, only previously girdled jack pine that had been colonized by cerambycid beetles contained B. xylophilus. The results of this study show that B. xylophilus can be transmitted to cut timber and dying trees and suggest that the nematode may be transmitted to dead and dying trees without necessarily being the primary cause of their death.