NOTES ON TAXONOMY AND BIOLOGY: Female M. arabicida have a cuticular perineal pattern with coarse striae and a dorsal arch low and trapezoidal. This root-knot nematode has sedentary endoparasitic habits. Second-stage juveniles (J2) in the soil penetrate host roots where they establish a specialized feeding site (giant cells) in the stele. As J2 develop, they cause root swellings and become swollen females, which produce egg masses protruding from the root surface. A characteristic syndrome called ‘corchosis’ is induced by concomitant infections by this nematode and Fusarium sp.on coffee roots due to the corky appearance of the parasitized roots.

GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION: Costa Rica.

HOSTS: Coffee (Coffea arabica).

CROP LOSSES: Severe decline and dieback of coffee trees are associated with nematode infections.

MEANS OF MOVEMENT AND DISPERSAL: Through root material, soil debris, and poorly sanitized bare root propagative plant material.

RATING: (L) Taking into consideration the limited distribution, host range of this nematode, and the low chance of its introduction into the US, the priority for a PRA is rated low.

REFERENCES:
    Bertrand, B., C. Nunez, and J. L. Sarah. 2000. Disease complex in coffee involving Meloidogyne arabicida and Fusarium oxysporum. Plant Pathology 49:383-388.
    Lopez, R. and L. Salazar. 1989.  Meloidogyne arabicida sp. n. (Nemata: Heteroderidae) nativo de Costa Rica un nuevo y severo patógeno del cafeto. Turrialba 39:313-323.