A survey was conducted in the northern conifer forests of Turkey in 2003 and 2004 for the pinewood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus. Wood samples were collected from declining pine trees, located in the following target areas: Düzce, Ankara, Bolu, and Artvin. Nematodes were extracted from over 310 samples and were observed and identified. B. xylophilus was not detected in any samples. Bursaphelenchus species were only found in 6% of the samples. From the B. xylophilus‐group, only the species B. mucronatus was reported. Species identification was performed from morphological characters, particularly male spicules, and by molecular analysis with ITS‐RFLP.

Monochamus galloprovincialis (Olivier) is the vector of the pinewood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (Steiner and Buhrer) Nickle, in Europe and Asia. Reproduction is probably the most important event in the life history of insects and may be affected by a number of factors, such as seasonal changes in larval or adult nutrition. In this study the effect of season on the reproductive potential of M. galloprovincialis females reared in black pine logs was investigated by constructing fertility tables for each of 43 pine logs that differed only in the season that they were cut. Population parameters were compared among 3 seasonal cohorts. The intrinsic rate of increase and related population parameters of the beetles that emerged from autumn logs were mostly higher than for beetles that emerged from spring and summer logs. These results suggest that seasonal differences in the nutritional quality of the logs (for immature development) and pine twigs (for adult feeding) may have caused the observed differences in M. galloprovincialis survival and reproduction.

Bursaphelenchus xylophilus is a serious threat to the European conifer forests. In Turkey, four Bursaphelenchus species (B. mucronatus, B. sexdentati, B. anamurius and B. vallesianus) were isolated from wilted pine trees. To determine the effects of Bursaphelenchus species on the wilting of pine trees, a pathogenicity study was conducted comparing greenhouse and outdoor conditions. Three-year-old seedlings of Pinus nigra, P. sylvestris and P. pinaster were used for inoculation tests. Approximately 1000 (±100) nematodes of all life stages in 0.5 ml distilled water were inoculated into each seedling. The first wilting symptoms were observed in the fifth week. Mortalities occurred between the 5th and 13th weeks of the study. B. mucronatus was the most pathogenic nematode species. The most susceptible seedling species was P. pinaster, and P. nigra was the most resistant species. The mean number of wilted seedlings differed significantly among nematode species and seedling species but not between greenhouse and outdoor conditions.

Insect species collected in log depots in Western Black Sea Region of Turkey were identified. The study covered two years, 2015 and 2016, in 21 log depots in seven provinces (Duzce, Bolu, Zonguldak, Bartin, Karabuk, Kastamonu and Sinop). The study area was divided into three sub regions and each sub region was analyzed for insect species, their prevalence and intensities. Overall, four orders, 22 families, 74 genera and 57 species were described in log depots of the study area. Sub region 1 (Düzce-Bolu) showed the highest diversity in terms of insect species and sub region 2 (Zonguldak-Bartin) had the lowest diversity. Dorcus parallelipipedus Linnaeus, 1758 (Coleoptera: Lucanidae) and Rhagium inquisitor Linnaeus, 1758 (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) were found in all provinces studied. Based on wood species analysis, Scots pine wood had the highest diversity in insect species, followed by fi r, oak and beech. The study also described some important wood-destroying insect species from the families Anobiidae, Buprestidae and Cerambycidae. Buprestis dalmatina (Mannerheim, 1837) (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), Leptura aurulenta (Fabricius, 1792) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) and Stictoleptura scutellata (Fabricius, 1781) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), all wood-destroying insect species, were identified for the first time in the Western Black Sea Region of Turkey.

The pinewood nematode, is the causal agent of pine wilt disease, a serious threat to native pine forest in eastern Asia (Japan, Korea, China and Taiwan) and some parts of North America (USA, Canada and Mexico). In 1999, this nematode was found and identified for the first time in Portugal and in Europe. galloprovincialis were compared with M. carolinensis, Nort American vector, and some of them were found to be similar.