Wow, written in 1947. Wonder if it does any harm to the human digestive
system. It would be pretty easy for someone swimming in a lake or pond to
take one in.
Alice
I hadn't even noticed the date! I wonder. but if they are parasites
to insects, maybe not humans???
susan
<< Wow, written in 1947. Wonder if it does any harm to the human digestive
system. It would be pretty easy for someone swimming in a lake or pond to
take one in. >>
Well, too many roundworms killed a kitten of mine, so I sure don't think they
would do you any good.
Mary Ann
TOX-o-kah-RYE-us-sis)Roundworm Infection (Zoonotic)
What is toxocariasis?What are the symptoms of toxocariasis?How serious is infection with Toxocara?How is toxocariasis spread?How can I get toxocariasis?What should I do if I think I have toxocariasis?What is the treatment for toxocariasis?Who is at risk for toxocariasis?How can you prevent toxocariasis?For more information
What is toxocariasis?
Toxocariasis is a zoonotic (animal to human) infection caused by the parasitic roundworms commonly found in the intestine of dogs (Toxocara canis) and cats (T. cati). In the United States, an estimated 10,000 cases of Toxocara infections occur yearly in humans.
What are the symptoms of toxocariasis? http://www.cdc.gov/Ncidod/dpd/parasites/toxocara/factsht_toxocara.htm Amy of Marvelous GardensZone 10 or Sunset zone 23http://home.earthlink.net/~marvelousgardens/--- On Mon 09/18, Alice Halbeisen < alice.h@COMCAST.NET > wrote:
From: Alice Halbeisen [mailto: alice.h@COMCAST.NET]To: OGL@LSV.UKY.EDUDate: Mon, 18 Sep 2006 11:16:52 -0400Subject: Re: hair snakesWow, written in 1947. Wonder if it does any harm to the human digestive system. It would be pretty easy for someone swimming in a lake or pond to take one in.AliceAt 04:02 PM 9/14/2006, you wrote:>good, Margaret. I found this!!>>>Nature Bulletin No. 101 February 1, 1947>Forest Preserve District of Cook County>William N. Erickson, President>Roberts Mann, Supt. of Conservation>>****:HAIR SNAKES>>Farm boys have more fun than city boys. Every farm boy has watched>the "hair snakes" sometimes found wriggling in drinking troughs for>horses and cattle, or in puddles on a country road. They and their>fathers will argue obstinately that these are hairs, from a horse's mane>or tail, that turned into snakes. Phooie!>>Hair snakes are not snakes at all. They are roundworms. There are four>common groups of
worms here: annelids, which include earthworms>and sewage-sludge worms; tapeworms; flatworms; and roundworms.>The last three are called the "Lower Worms" and many of them are>parasitic in other animals.>>The adult hair snakes, called "Gordian worms" by biologists because>frequently found in tangled masses suggesting the Gordian knot of>mythology, do resemble animated horsehairs or fine wires. They are>covered with a thick tough skin and teel like the wet gut leader on a>fishing line. They have a pair of eyes and many fine bristles along the>body which are sensitive to touch. Having no mouth, they cannot eat>although they may live for weeks or even months. They are freeliving -->only in the young stages are they parasitic.>>The female lays a white thread-like string of eggs, sometimes several>feet long and containing millions of tiny eggs, often found along the>shores of streams and lakes, or on aquatic plants. After hatching,
the>tiny young bores its way into some aquatic insect such as the mayfly>larva where it passes through one stage of its development. It may>remain there until the insect is eaten by a beetle or a fish. Or, if the>insect dies, it may find its way into the body of a grasshopper, a cricket,>or a beetle, where it completes the second larval stage and becomes an>adult worm.>>If this second insect "host" falls into a brook or pond, the worm breaks>through the body wall of the insect and seeks a mate. Otherwise it>breaks through, falls on land, and may be swept into a body of water, or>a puddle, by rain. Once we saw two boys, both sons of zoologists,>having a swell time dropping grasshoppers into a tub of water and>betting on whether a hair snake would emerge, thus completing the>cycle.>>The roundworm goes round and round.
but i am pretty sure that the round worms here may not be the same
ones that are the "hair snakes" there are probably many different
round worms.
susan
here is the info on the "hair snakes" gordian worms., they are not
parasitic on humans or other mammals.
susan
Gordian Worms
Phylum Nematomorpha
Gordian worms belong to a small phylum, the Nematomorpha: a name that
means 'form of a thread'. Their habit of writhing and contorting
themselves into knots, with one or more worms tangled together,
accounts for their common name, 'Gordian' Worm. This is after
Gordius, King of Phrygia, who tied an intricate knot and declared
that whoever untied it should rule Asia. Alexander the Great cut the
Gordian knot with his sword.
Identification
Adult Gordian Worms are shaped like long, thin pieces of cord. They
taper slightly at each end and reach lengths of about 22 cm to 30 cm.
The diameter is usually not much more than a millimetre. They are
brown or black in colour. There is no distinct head and the male
differs from the female in having a forked tail. The males are often
very active in their swimming, while females are more sluggish.
Habitat and Biology
Gordian Worms are found all over the world, in still water such as
puddles, ditches, ponds and quiet areas in streams. Sometimes they
get into domestic water supplies, such as toilets or bowls of water.
They are usually found after rains, their sudden appearance leading
to stories to explain their presence. Some communities believe that a
'rain of worms' has occurred, others that horsehairs have 'come to
life' after falling into a pond or stream. Since they often appear in
animal watering troughs and their appearance is not unlike that of
horsehair, although they are thicker, it is not difficult to see how
this explanation came about. This also led to other common names,
such as 'Horsehair Worms' and 'Horsehair Snakes'.
Adult Gordian Worms are free-living in water, but the juveniles are
parasitic in land-dwelling insects and spiders. Because these hosts
are not found in water, the larvae must reach them by a two-step
process. The adult Gordian Worms attach long egg-strings to
waterweeds and other debris in water. From these eggs, tiny larvae
hatch and sink to the bottom, but can only survive for a short time
unless they find a host. Many animals, such as fish, snails and small
crustaceans, get infected.
The Gordian worm larvae are thought to bore into the first host's
tissues by means of an armature of spines on the proboscis (feeding
structure, 'nose'). The larvae then form cysts (protective shells on
their outer surfaces) in the body, but usually do not proceed further
through their life cycle within these aquatic hosts. Many insects,
however, have an aquatic, worm-like, larval stage (for example
mosquito and dragonfly larvae), and if these animals are infected,
then the Gordian cysts can be carried from the water when the insect
larvae metamorphose into flying insects. When these insects are eaten
by other invertebrates, such as grasshoppers, crickets, mantids,
beetles, cockroaches and spiders, the Gordian Worm cysts can then
break open and the larvae penetrate the gut of the new terrestrial
host. Sometimes these hosts can be infected directly when they visit
water, or live close to it.
A larva lives in the body cavity of its host, secreting digestive
enzymes through its skin to gradually absorb the host's body
contents. It grows and sheds its larval structures, such as the hooks
and stylets of the proboscis, and gradually changes its skin to that
of an adult. Larval development takes a number of weeks, or even
months, during which time the contents of the host's abdomen are
completely consumed and the larva completely fills the cavity. It
then breaks out when the host is near water, and takes up a free-
living existence until its sex organs mature. The worms don't feed at
all in the adult phase of their life cycle, so they die when the
stored foods in their bodies are depleted.
The free-living adult is the reproductive stage of the life cycle.
The sexes are separate (i.e., individuals are either male or female)
and the entire body of an adult is filled with two cylindrical sex
organs (the gonads) containing eggs or sperm. The worms mate in
water. A single female can lay as many as 10 million eggs. The larvae
hatch after two to four weeks. Adult Gordian Worms are not often seen
as they live for only two to four weeks and the females tend to hide
among rocks, sticks and small branches in the water.
A number of freshwater fishes feed voraciously on Gordian Worms in
summer and their stomachs may be crammed with the brown, thread-like
worms. The fishes are not harmed by the worms and they are still safe
to eat.
There have been reports of humans and dogs excreting Gordian Worms.
Accidental ingestion of the worms, perhaps in drinking water, is the
most likely explanation for these observations. Although Gordian
Worms can resemble some of the parasitic round worms (Phylum
Nematoda), but there is no danger of humans becoming parasitised by
them.
Well, that's a relief. Thanks for that info, Susan.
Alice
Alice
but i am pretty sure that the round worms here may not be the same =
ones that are the "hair snakes" there are probably many different round =
worms.
susan
Litterally millions of different ones.john
