Microspatial structure of a plant-parasitic nematode community in a sugarcane field in Martinique

The spatial pattern of four species of plant-parasitic nematodes in a sugarcane crop in Martinique was analysed using geostatistics. Aggregation of populations was first described with the variance to mean ratio and Morisita's index. The indices showed that nematodes had clumped distributions. Geostatistical analysis demonstrated that the nematode data were autocorrelated and allowed a fine description of the species density patterns. Correspondence analysis was used to ordinate the data and showed the presence of an antagonism between Criconemella onoensis and the other species. A cross semi-variogram indicated a negative cross correlation between the pattern of Criconemella onoensis and the pattern of the sum of the other species present at the study site.