Nematodes represent a species-rich and morphologically diverse group of metazoans known to inhabit
both aquatic and terrestrial environments. Their role as biological indicators and as key players in nutrient
cycling has been well documented. Some plant-parasitic species are also known to cause significant losses to crop
production. In spite of this, there still exists a huge gap in our knowledge of their diversity due to the enormity
of time and expertise often involved in characterising species using phenotypic features. Molecular methodology
provides useful means of complementing the limited number of reliable diagnostic characters available
for morphology-based identification. We discuss herein some of the limitations of traditional taxonomy and
how molecular methodologies, especially the use of high-throughput sequencing, have assisted in carrying out
large-scale nematode community studies and characterisation of phytonematodes through rapid identification
of multiple taxa. We also provide brief descriptions of some the current and almost-outdated high-throughput
sequencing platforms and their applications in both plant nematology and soil ecology