PARIS (Reuters) -French authorities have detected for the first time a microscopic worm that can ravage pine trees, extending the presence of the pathogen in Europe after it spread in Portugal and Spain in recent decades, France’s agriculture ministry said.

Known as the pine wilt nematode, the organism originated in North America and causes trees to perish by stopping their resin from circulating.

The first French case was confirmed in the district of Seignosse in the southwestern Landes region, about 60 km from Spain, the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

The zone is considered vulnerable to the pathogen given its proximity to Spain and prevalence of pine trees in its forests.

France’s overall forest area has expanded steadily in recent decades, though the authorities are conce

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