“I found a dozen of these on my sidewalk, what type of worm are these?” asks this reader in their submission regarding the long, white, tangled worms pictured below. No further context is provided, but we do have to point out that the photos our reader sent in are just fantastic: it is this level of quality that lets us, as well as our other readers, more easily identify the organisms in the photo. It helps us identify the creatures faster, and it helps other readers identify the worms they might be dealing with. In our reader’s case, we think these could be roundworms or horsehair worms, though given the nondescript nature of the worms’ bodies, it is hard to tell for certain.

When it comes to roundworms, or ‘Nematodes’, it is worth mentioning that when you look them up, loads of information about parasitic roundworms will come up, which is definitely appropriate. There are indeed parasitic roundworms that can infect humans and are very dangerous. That said, we are not saying that the worms our reader found are parasites. Not only are there actually more species of roundworms that are non-parasitic, but, more importantly, we are neither qualified nor legally able to identify parasites given the medical situation they pose. Only a medical professional is able to identify a parasite. What we will say about parasitic vs non-parasitic roundworms is that parasitic roundworms typically can only survive inside a host and cannot be free-living like the worms in our reader’s photo. But that is not to say that these are definitely not parasitic, as there could be exceptions.

If our reader is concerned that these could be parasitic, we advise that they consult a medical parasitologist, as they specialize in this very area (which primary care physicians are often not trained to diagnose and treat parasites and have, in the case of many of our other readers, turned away patients wanting help). To find a medical parasitologist or other health care provider who can actually help, our reader can do one or more of the following:

– Visit our parasite care resources page here: https://www.allaboutworms.com/get-medical-attention-and-tests-for-parasites

– Search for a medical parasitologist in their area using this directory of medical parasitology consultants: https://www.astmh.org/for-astmh-members/clinical-consultants-directory.

– Search for a local parasitologist by doing a Google search for “medical parasitologist (name of the closest big city)” or “tropical medicine specialist (name of the closest big city)”.

Now, assuming this is not a parasite, free-living, non-parasitic roundworms are typically found in aquatic habitats, and are predatory creatures. Of course, these ones were found on a sidewalk. It is possible that, with heavy rainfall, aquatic worms find their way onto land due to their body of water flooding. Equally, these could be a different species of worm entirely. When we saw how the bodies of the worms were tangled with themselves, we thought of Gordian worms; also known as horsehair worms, Gordian worms are named after the myth of the Gordian knot: an impossible knot that Alexander the Great supposedly cut through with this sword. And they are named after this myth because they tend to knot their own bodies like the worms pictured below. Technically, Gordian worms are parasites, but they do not take humans as hosts, only insects. They also prefer aquatic habitats, and will typically only emerge as full adults from their insect hosts when the host is near a body of water, but that could even include a pond. Our reader need not fear these worms if they are Gordian worms, but, since we do not know their exact identity, we would recommend avoiding physical contact with them anyway.

In conclusion, we are not entirely sure what these worms are that our reader found, but we think they look most like roundworms or Gordian worms. If our reader starts noticing symptoms as a result of finding these worms (particularly if they touched the worms), we definitely recommend consulting a medical parasitologist. We hope this helps, and we wish them the very best!

Summary

Article Name

Dozen White Worms on Sidewalk Could be Roundworms or Gordian Worms

Description

"I found a dozen of these on my sidewalk, what type of worm are these?" asks this reader in their submission regarding the long, white, tangled worms pictured below. No further context is provided, but we do have to point out that the photos our reader sent in are just fantastic: it is this level of quality that lets us, as well as our other readers, more easily identify the organisms in the photo. It helps us identify the creatures faster, and it helps other readers identify the worms they might be dealing with. In our reader's case, we think these could be roundworms or horsehair worms, though given the nondescript nature of the worms' bodies, it is hard to tell for certain.

Author

Worm Researcher Anton