Belonolaimus longicaudatus

Zeng, Yongsan, Ye, Weimin, Tredway, Lane, Martin, Samuel & Martin, Matt, 2012, Taxonomy and morphology of plant-parasitic nematodes associated with turfgrasses in North and South Carolina, USA, Zootaxa 3452, pp. 1-46 : 16

Belonolaimus longicaudatus

( Fig. 4 A–E)

Measurements. See Table 8 .

Remarks. Belonolaimus longicaudatus was described from soil around the roots of Zea mays in Sanford, Florida, by Rau (1958). It is a major plant parasite in the southeastern USA, with widespread distribution throughout the Atlantic Coastal Plain from Virginia to Florida ( Orton Williams 1974a). It has been recorded from NC ( Lucas et al. 1974, 1978), Connecticut, Louisiana, Texas ( Christie 1959), New Jersey ( Myers 1979), Oklahoma ( Russell et al. 1969), Arkansas ( Riggs 1961), Kansas ( Dickerson et al. 1972) and California ( Mundo-Ocampo et al. 1994). Holdeman (1955) reported B. longicaudatus in Florida, Georgia, NC, SC and Virginia. It has a wide host range including citrus ( Duncan et al. 1996), soybean ( Handoo et al. 2010), corn ( Rhoades 1986), cotton ( Koenning et al. 2004), carrot ( Rhoades 1975) and turfgrasses ( Robbins & Barker 1973). It is considered the most important pest of turf and pasture grasses ( Heald & Perry 1970; Crow 2005b). This species has been documented in association with many grass species, including bermudagrass, creeping bentgrass, zoysiagrass, crabgrass ( Digitaria sanguinalis ), pangolagrass ( D. decumbens ), Pensacola bahiagrass ( Paspalum notatum ), centipedegrass ( Eremochloa ophiuroides ), tall fescue ( Festuca arundinacea ), Italian ryegrass ( Lolium multiflorum ), sudangrass (Sorghum vulgare var. sudanense ), limpograss ( Hemarthria altissima ) and St. Augustine grass ( Stenotaphrum secundatum ) ( Johnson 1970; Orton Williams 1974a; Busey et al. 1991; Giblin-Davis et al. 1992). In this survey, B. longicaudatus was found in 131 turfgrass samples in three turf management zones (green, fairway and tee) in both NC and SC and three grass species (bermudagrass, creeping bentgrass, zoysiagrass) from 24 counties. There was no difference in morphology and morphometrics compared to the original and other descriptions of the species ( Rau 1958; Han et al. 2006).

Figures

FIGURE 4. Micrographs of Belonolaimus longicaudatus and Dolichodorus heterocephalus from turfgrasses in NC and SC. All scale bars = 20 µm. A. Pharyngeal region of B. longicaudatus. B. Vulva region of B. longicaudatus. C. Female tail of B. longicaudatus. D, E. Male tails of B. longicaudatus. F. Pharyngeal region of D. heterocephalus. G. Vulval region of D. heterocephalus. H. Female tail of D. heterocephalus. I. Male tails of D. heterocephalus.