Part 8/16:
In laboratories, scientists worked tirelessly to cultivate the pathogens from wood samples, revealing fungi such as Fusarium strains. These fungi invade the tree’s vascular system—the plant’s equivalent of blood vessels—clogging water and nutrient transport, which leads to accelerated death. As these fungi produce spores that are carried by beetles, especially Ambrosia beetles, the disease had a natural vector that facilitated its rapid spread.