Studies on soil nematodes in al-muthanna province, Iraq

Fofty soil samples were collected from different regions of Al-Muthanna province. The examination carried out by sedimentation using of ethyl acetate. The rate of total positive samples with nematodes was 25.3 per cent. Four genera were identified in this study are Aphelenchoides, Pratylenchus, Longidorus and Paratrichodorus. The rate of positive samples was 7.4, 5.9, 4.4 and 4.4 per cent, respectively. Toxocara eggs were also detected under the microscope with rate of 2.9 per cent. The rate of parasitic existance vaired with the season as the highest rate of positive samples was in November (66.6%), while the lowest rate in March and April (8.3%). This can suggest the importance of the temperature and humidity in spreading of nematdes in the soil.