First report of Meloidogyne javanica infecting Zinnia elegans in Ceará State, Brazil

Roots of Zinnia elegans exhibiting galls were observed and collected in the city of Pacoti, CE, Brazil. Through the morphological characterization and molecular analysis of the ITS and 28S rDNA regions, the causal agent was identified as a nematode of the genus Meloidogyne species M. javanica. This is the first detection of M. javanica in Zinnia elegans in the state of Ceará in Brazil.