Taxonomy and Biogeography of Nematode Communities at Harvard Forest 2014

Our overall goal is to describe and map nematode biodiversity in North America. Specifically we will concentrate on Criconematina, a suborder of plant parasitic, soil-dwelling nematodes. Criconematina, commonly referred to as ring-nematodes, are distributed globally associated with a wide range of hosts and habitats. In native grasslands and forests, they may constitute as much as 30% of the below-ground nematode community. Their abundance often approaches 500 individuals per 100cc of soil with as many as a dozen species recorded from a single habitat. Host associations may be broad, covering entire plant families, or they may specialize in feeding on a few closely related plant species. Several are known agronomic pest species, but the vast majority is known only from native habitats and responds negatively to soil disturbance. Due to their sensitivity to disturbance and associations with a range of plant species, some ecologists have suggested that ring nematodes could serve as a below-ground biological indicator of habitat quality. Before this application is possible taxonomic boundaries need to be evaluated and a reference database needs to be established.