hammerhead worm
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Posted in Flatworm Hammerhead Worm

Fishing with Hammerhead Worms

We recently received a question from a reader about whether or not it is possible to fish with hammerhead worms. The reader didn’t actually ask about hammerhead worms specifically, but she sent us a picture of what we are basically certain is a hammerhead worm, and then asked if she can fish with it. We’ll first provide some basic information about these creatures, and then we’ll move on to the more specific topic of fishing with hammerhead worms.

Hammerhead Worm
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Posted in Interesting Worms

Long Worms with Black Stripes and Flat Heads

A couple of days ago we received a question from a reader in Northern California who found a six-inch “worm-like being with black horizontal stripes and a flat, fan-shaped head.” By “fan-shaped head,” we are assuming our reader means the worm’s head is, first, clearly distinct from the rest of its long, striped body and, two, somewhat flat and spread out, perhaps in half-circle shape. If this is true, we have a pretty good idea what our reader found: a hammerhead worm (sometimes spelled “hammer head worm”).

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Posted in Parasite Worms

Long Black Worms and Dogs

A concerned reader wrote to us recently about a long, black worm he found in his house. He is worried that his dog has “a terrible worm of some kind.” We are of course highly sensitive to his concerns, but the reader makes no explicit connection between his dog and the long, black worm he found. He merely mentions that he came home (and presumably found the worm) and is worried about his dog. He didn’t mention any behavior of the dog that implies it has a worm infection, nor did he say he saw the worm come from the dog’s body. We are therefore slightly puzzled why he immediately linked the worm he found to his dog. In any case, he only asked us to identify the long, black worm, so hopefully in helping with this we can provide some guidance.

Hammerhead Worm
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Posted in Hammerhead Worm

Long Brown Worms with Black Stripes – Hammerhead Worms

A reader wrote to us a while back about a long brown worm with black stripes that she found in a decaying stump. Fortunately, she sent us an excellent photo of the brown worm, which we were quickly able to identify as a hammerhead worm (sometimes understandably, but incorrectly, spelled “hammer head worm”). The reader was merely wondering what the long brown worm was, so we’ve technically already answered her question, but if we stopped writing now, we wouldn’t have a very satisfying article to read. So, below we supply some information about hammerhead worms, which includes the reader’s excellent picture.