Tag: roundworms
Roundworm (Round Worms, Round Worm)
Roundworm, commonly called “round worms” or “round worm” is one of the most common worms to infect pets. But round worms can infect humans, too.
Live Roundworm Worm Found Living in Australian Woman’s Brain
While we don’t usually post about parasites that infect humans, we are posting about this, including a link, so that people can point to this story as proof that yes, people have parasitic ‘worms’ of all sorts infecting them. Medical editor Melissa Davey wrote an “article on a live worm that was found inside a woman’s brain“. The worm was a roundworm, one of Earth’s most simple creatures. There are many species of parasitic roundworms that can be contracted in various ways, but this particular discovery was a first. The species of roundworm they found inside the woman’s brain was a species normally found in pythons, not humans.
Dozen White Worms on Sidewalk Could be Roundworms or Gordian Worms
“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.
Yellowish White Worm Looks like a Roundworm: Medical Consultation is Recommended
“Identity please?” is all this reader writes in her submission regarding the long, off-white worm-like creature pictured below. In any case where the worm photographed is not unique in its appearance and thus instantly recognizable, identifying a worm based only on a photo is nearly impossible without context. For that reason, we will not be able to provide our reader with a concrete identity of this organism: its white color and nondescript body renders this worm generic in appearance, which is makes it all that much harder to pinpoint its exact identity. With that said, what we will do is provide an educated guess and give our reader some pointers as to what she might want to do, depending on what her concerns are.
Woman Worried for Her Health Believes Home is Infested with Bed Bugs, Hammerhead Worms and Roundworms
“I keep finding what looks to be small worms” states this reader, who is worried about the organisms in the photos below. In her submission, our reader brings up bed bugs, flatworms, and roundworms, so we will address all of these in this article.
Smooth, Pink Worm Found Next to Dog Excrement is Potentially an Earthworm
“I woke up and saw this next to my dog’s poop” states this reader in her submission. “What is it?” she asks about the small, pink-colored worm in the picture below.
Noodle-Like Gray Worms in Swimming Pool May Be Roundworms
“I just found these after vacuuming my pool” says this reader about a tangle of gray worms pictured below in the photograph our reader sent us. “They are quite long and active” and are “at least two inches” in length. “What are they?” our reader asks.
New Species of Nematode Discovered with Three Sexes
In the human world, matters of gender and sex are topical and have been debated for many years, but it seems in the world of worms, they simply do not care. One such mascot of this is a new species of worm discovered in California which has three sexes.
Worm Studies Tell Us About the Nature of Death
Death is one of the greatest mysteries of life; we grieve it, we run from it, and many are trying to solve it. Surprisingly enough, studies into the process of death in worms have given us a lot of insight into how death might work for humans as well.
Worms in Pets and What To Do About Them
There are many wonders and joys to owning a pet, but along with the enormous responsibility they impose, there are unfortunately also a lot of complications that one might have to overcome, such as health problems. One of the health problems that both dogs and cats alike can face are intestinal worms.
Precautions to Take When Going on Vacation so You Don’t Get Worms
It is not uncommon for us to receive submissions from readers who have been on vacation and have come home to discover that they are infested with some kind of parasite. Naturally, we sympathize with any of our readers who have ever experienced something like this, and thus we wanted to write this article in order to give some basic tips to our readers on how to prevent something like this happening to them.
Worm in Toilet a Roundworm, Earthworm, or Something Else?
A reader in Buffalo, NY sent in a photograph of a long brown worm found in a toilet and asks if it is an ascaris worm, which is a type of roundworm. According to our reader, her bathroom has not been properly cleaned and the worm has been eating and growing inside the toilet.
What To Do if Your Doctor Cannot Treat Your Parasite
A mother’s son in South Carolina is reportedly infested with parasitic worms, and was turned away by medical professionals. She wonders not if we can identify the worm for her, but simply if any of our readers have felt like this before in the queries they send in.
The Horsehair Worm
We recently received a picture of a worm (posted below) that was discovered by a reader who was wondering what type of worm she found. The worm was found in a puddle in Indiana, where the reader is from (that is, the reader is from Indiana, not the puddle, presumably). We have long awaited a simple question to answer, as we’ve been dealing with some difficult (and strange) questions as of late, and happily this particular reader’s question is within our ability to identify. We are very confident that our reader found a horsehair worm (sometimes known as “Gordian worms”), which is a nematode or roundworm (also spelled “round worm”).
Roundworms, of the Phylum Nematoda
Roundworms, also known as nematodes (and sometimes incorrectly spelled “round worms”), are one of the most diverse animals in the world. Over 28,000 roundworm species have been discovered, well over half of which are parasitic. The present accounting of roundworms is no where near complete, however, as it has been estimated that there are over 1,000,000 species of roundworms on the planet. That is 1,000,000 different species of roundworms, not just the number, of course, of roundworms on the planet in general, which is surely larger by several orders of magnitude. Some people confuse roundworms, and ringworm, probably because ’round’ and ‘ring’ seem similar, however ringworm, which is not actually a worm at all, is something completely different.
The Life of Roundworms
Roundworms are spindle-shaped and they have thin, inflexible body walls that restrict their movements to whiplike thrashing. The roundworms nervous system is built on a H-shaped arrangement of canals that open via a pore at the front of the body.
Worms in the Human Body
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 2 billion people around the world are infected with parasitic worms. The condition causes severe illness in roughly 300 million people each year.
Parasitic Worms
Parasitic worms belong to one of four groups including Cestoda, Nematoda, Protozoa, or Trematoda. Some parasitic worms are microscopic while others can be identified fairly easily with one quick look.
Can Worms Grow In Your Hair?
Most worms that infect humans need something to feed on. Some attach themselves to the walls of the intestines and feed on everything in sight, while others may feed on tissues and blood in other parts of the body.
Worms in Dog Stool
In addition to your dog’s food, dog worms can be found in on or buried in your dog’s fur, around his anus, around his paws (from scratching) and it is not uncommon to find them in your dog’s ears.