NOTE ON TAXONOMY AND BIOLOGY: Females of this needle nematode are 5.2-7.5 mm long. They have characteristic symmetrical bilobed amphidial pouches. Their odontostylet and odontophore are 73-93 and 36-45 µm long, respectively. Their tail is conoid. This needle nematode has ectoparasitic habits and feeds on root tips causing small apical galls. It requires one or more years to complete its life cycle. Males are rare. This nematode vectors the tomato black ring virus (TBRV) (Brown and Boag, 1977).

GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION: Longidorus attenuatusis has been reported from the following countries: Bulgaria, France, Italy, Germany, Nigeria, Poland, Spain, U. K. and ex USSR.

HOSTS: This needle nematode parasitizes many agronomic crops, such as barley (Hordeum vulgare), cabbage (Brassica sp.), clover (Trifolium sp.), potato (Solanum tuberosum), ryegrass (Lolium sp), strawberry (Fragaria X Ananassa), sugarbeet (Beta vulgaris), and wheat (Triticum sp.). Other crops damaged directly by the nematode or by the virus it transmits include, alfalfa (Medicago sativa), carrot (Daucus carota), pumpkin (Cucurbita sp.), and grape (Vitis sp.).

CROP LOSSES: The nematode is a damaging pest of field crops and it is associated with a crop decline called Docking disorder of sugarbeet (Cooke, 1993). This nematode is able to transmit TBRV virus, which is a devastating pathogen of grape (Brown et al., 1993).

MEANS OF MOVEMENT AND DISPERSAL: Longidorus attenuatus is dispersed with infested soil, poorly sanitized bare rooted plants or contaminated machinery.

RATING: (L) Although this nematode should be excluded if it is detected, it was given a low priority rating for a complete risk assessment, because it is an ectoparasite and the primary entry pathway would be mineral soil which currently cannot be imported with plants.

REFERENCES:
    Brown, D. J. F., and B. Boag. 1977. Longidorus attenuatus. CIH descriptions of plant parasitic nematodes, Set 7, No. 101. St. Albans, UK: Commonwealth Institute of Helminthology.
    Brown, D. J. F., A. Dalmasso and D. L. Trudgill. 1993. Nematodes pests of soft fruits and vines. Pp.427-462 in K. Evans, D. L. Trudgill, and J. M. Webster eds. Plant parasitic nematodes in temperate agriculture. Wallingford, UK: CAB International.
    Cooke, R. 1993. Nematode parasites of sugarbeet. Pp. 133-169 in K. Evans, D. L. Trudgill, and J. M. Webster eds. Plant parasitic nematodes in temperate agriculture. Wallingford, UK: CAB International.