Preferred Temperature of Meloidogyne incognita.
In laboratory thermal gradients, newly hatched infective juveniles of the plant-parasitic root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita migrated toward a preferred temperature that was several degrees above the temperature to which they were acclimated. After shifting egg masses to a new temperature, the preferred temperature was reset in less than a day. Possible functions of this type of thermotaxis are discussed, including the use of thermal gradients around plant roots to locate hosts and to maintain a relatively straight path while ranging in the absence of other cues (a collimating stimulus).
Diez
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Dusenbery
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