Economic significance of the quarantine nematode Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (Steiner & Buhrer, 1934) Nickle, 1970 in eastern Asia and a growing threat of its dispersion in forest stands across Europe have recently created the urgent need for greater precision of taxonomic identification of nematodes in the genus Bursaphelenchus and increased scientific interest in this group. The genus Bursaphelenchus includes over 80 species with the majority living under the bark and wood of coniferous or deciduous trees in association with wood-boring insects. In natural conditions these nematodes are not pathogenic to the host-tree or vector-insect, with the only exception of B. xylophilus, which can kill even mature trees within a few week period. Up to the present 18 species of to the genus Bursaphelenchus were isolated in Poland. Extensive sampling of trees in forest stands and in shipments of timber did not reveal the presence of the quarantine pest B. xylophilus, however other Bursaphelenchus species were frequently recorded. Four of these species turned to be new to science and were described subsequently as B. glochis, B. pinophilus, B. populi and B. trypophloei. Comparative study focused on geographically distant populations of members of the xylophilus group revealed a great intraspecific morphological variation among examined populations. The range of variation observed in morphology of female tail in B. fraudulentus and B. populi widely overlapped the range present in B. xylophilus, thus making these species morphologically undistinguishable from the quarantine pest. The obtained results showed that nematodes from the genus Bursaphelenchus are common in forest stands in Poland. The wide morphological variation and partial overlapping of essential characters among species of the xylophilus group make additional molecular examination of DNA a necessary component of the nematodes’ identification.
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