ABSTRACT
Japanese black pine (Pinus thunbergii Parl.), Japanese red pine (Pinus densifl ora Zieb. et Zucc.), yakutanegoyou (Pinus armandii Franch. var. amamiana (Koidz.) Hatusima), and Ryukyumatsu (Pinus luchuensis Mayr.), are important native forest tree species used for reforestation and landscaping in Japan. However, in recent years, Japanese pine populations have further declined as a result of pine wilt disease, caused by the pinewood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (Steiner et Buhrer) Nickle, which is primarily transmitted by the Japanese pine sawyer, Monochamus alternatus Hope (Akiba and Nakamura 2005). The pinewood nematode and pine sawyer are among the most serious pests in Japan, while pine wilt disease has been a key critical factor in the mass mortality of the Japanese pine forests (Maruyama et al. 2005a, Maruyama et al. 2005b, Maruyama et al. 2007, Hosoi and Maruyama 2012).
