A Brief Overview of the Pine Wood Nematode and Pine Wilt Disease in Canada and the United States

Abstract

The purpose here is not to review all the relevant literature on pine wilt disease, the pathogen, that is, the pine wood nematode (PWN), Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, host pines, or the nematode’s insect vector, species of Monochamus, in North America. Instead, it is to briefly summarize for North America what has already been cited in several review articles that have been published on these topics, especially on the pathogen, and disease, and where relevant, the possible and known vectors in the USA (Dwinell and Nickle 1989) and Canada (Bowers et al. 1992). Then follows a narrative on the conditions that limit the importance of pine wilt in Canada and the USA. Additional information on pine wilt, the pathogen, vectors, effects of climatic conditions on the two, hosts and so on can be found in the review articles by Mamiya (1983) and Dwinell (1997) and the book entitled “Pathogenicity of the Pine Wood Nematode” (Wingfield 1987a). Although the PWN has been reported in Mexico (Dwinell 1985a), essentially nothing else is known about it or the disease there; consequently, the discussion here is confined to Canada and the USA.