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Pet Forum / Miscellaneous / Animal Health / January 2005Help identifying parasite
I found what looks like a parasitic roundworm in a puddle on the ground at the stable where my horse lives. You can see pictures of the critter here: http://www.stanford.edu/~lanz/ According to my vet, this is not an equine parasite; does anybody recognize it? I'm wondering if it's a bovine worm (there are cattle on the land adjacent to the stables). The worm is 10 or 12 inches long, 1 or 2 mm in diameter; in the puddle it was golden brown in color. What really puzzles me is how this guy ended up in that puddle to begin with, all by himself, perfectly clean and apparently healthy...  SignatureKai Lanz lanz@pangea.stanford.edu School of Earth Sciences 650 723-3400 > I found what looks like a parasitic roundworm in a puddle on the ground > at the stable where my horse lives. You can see pictures of the critter [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > What really puzzles me is how this guy ended up in that puddle to begin > with, all by himself, perfectly clean and apparently healthy... Hi Kai, Just did a search of "worms" in Google for images and there was a picture entitled "horsehair worm" Did a little more digging and found these descriptions. Perhaps this is what you found? http://creatures.ifas.ufl.edu/misc/horsehair_worms.htm http://www.biosci.ohio-state.edu/~parasite/nematomorpha.html http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/iiin/horsehai.html Judy > I found what looks like a parasitic roundworm in a puddle on the ground > at the stable where my horse lives. You can see pictures of the critter [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > What really puzzles me is how this guy ended up in that puddle to begin > with, all by himself, perfectly clean and apparently healthy... Since you are a student at Stanford, why not take the worm and take it into the university's parasitology department. I am sure they'd have a field day with it. Does not look like a cattle nor horse nor pig roundworm nor tapeworm. Actually I am wondering if this is a joke, since it just looks like a piece of string lol. fiddlinvet > Since you are a student at Stanford, why not take the worm and take it > into [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > I am wondering if this is a joke, since it just looks like a piece of > string lol. Check the links I posted to the OP. On the last one, this worm is described as being "no bigger around than a kite string." :c) Judy > I found what looks like a parasitic roundworm in a puddle on the ground > at the stable where my horse lives. You can see pictures of the critter [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > What really puzzles me is how this guy ended up in that puddle to begin > with, all by himself, perfectly clean and apparently healthy... .......roundworms are nematodes. If it's not a string this is a nematode. If it was any kind of a GI parasitic nematode it would not be happy in a puddle of water. Take my word for it - I once dunked a thrown up roundworm in water and it writhed and died. However, the most likely suspect is a parasitic nematode of crickets. Ever squashed a big fat cricket and out popped an enormous nematode? They can get so big they take up the whole insides of the cricket. Gordian Knot = Horsehair worm - parasitic to cricket: http://www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu/aginfo/entomology/entupdates/Indoor_pest/horseh air_worm.ht ........the other poster's right. If you really want to know find the appropriate department and have them take a look. Nematodes are largely identified by parts you can't see with the naked eye. buglady take out the dog before replying > Ever squashed a big fat cricket and out > popped an enormous nematode? They can get so big they take up the whole > insides of the cricket. I say this as the mother of 3 boys who love this stuff, and as a former science teacher myself. VERY cool! <I'll trade you a picture of a cool spleenic tumor for a nematode!!> -Sharon Wow, thanks for all the replies! It looks like what I found is a horsehair worm. The description on this page reflects my observations with eerie accuracy: http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/iiin/horsehai.html I'm amazed that so much worm can live in a cricket or grasshopper. But at least they don't present any risk to the horses and dogs at the stables. SignatureKai Lanz lanz@pangea.stanford.edu School of Earth Sciences 650 723-3400 |
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