The pinewood nematode (Bursaphelenchus xylophilus) is the most devastating parasite of pine forests across Eurasia. To combat the pinewood nematode, European regulation requires that Member States clear-cut all susceptible tree species within a 500 meter radius of infested trees. However, this measure has not made it possible to eradicate the disease in Portugal, and a previous modeling study showed it was not effective in vast, pine-only forests.
