Parasitology Commons^™

Impacts Of Tick Parasitism On The Rodent Gut Microbiome, Robert J. Brinkerhoff, Joshua Pandian, Meghan Leber, Isabella D. Hauser, Holly D. Gaff

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Host microbiota may impact disease vector behavior and pathogen transmission, but little is known about associations between ectoparasites and microbial communities in wildlife reservoir species. We used Illumina metagenomic sequencing to explore the impacts of tick parasitism on the rodent fecal microbiome in both a field and laboratory setting. We found that tick parasitism on wild hosts was associated with variation in the fecal microbiota of both the white-footed deermouse, Peromyscus leucopus, and the southern cotton rat, Sigmodon hispidus. In a lab experiment, we detected significant changes to the fecal microbiome after experimental exposure to immature ticks in …

Finding Them Before They Find Us: Solving The Emerging Infectious Disease Crisis, Daniel R. Brooks

MANTER: Journal of Parasite Biodiversity

The human population grows daily, it’s on the move, and it’s carving a deep technological footprint on our planet. We alter landscapes and perturb ecosystems, inserting ourselves and other species into novel regions of the world, leading to potentially irreversible changes in the biosphere. This is not news. More than 75 years ago, Charles Elton, one of the founders of modern ecology, wrote, “We must make no mistake; we are seeing one of the greatest historical convulsions in the world’s fauna and flora.” We are also in the midst of a public health and epidemiological crisis. Climate change alters movements …

Concepts In Animal Parasitology, Scott L. Gardner, Sue Ann Gardner

Zea E-Books Collection

Note that this version of the textbook has been superceded by the one updated in 2026, available at the UNL Pressbooks site.

The hard copy version that is for sale at lulu.com is the old version.

"This is a textbook covering concepts in animal parasitology. It is meant to be used by students, teachers, professors, researchers, and members of the public who are interested in learning about animal parasite biology, systematics, taxonomy, zoogeography, and ecology. The primary intended audience is upper-level undergraduate or graduate university students who have knowledge of basic biology and, particularly, basic animal biology. (863 pages, …

The Effect Of Triaenophorus Crassus On The Condition Of Coregonus Artedi, Alexander Surma

Journal of Earth and Life Science

Cisco Coregonus artedi is, historically, the largest commercial fishery in the Great Lakes. The species is also important to commercial and recreational fisheries in inland lakes. Tapeworm Triaenophorus crassus larvae embed themselves into the flesh of Ciscoes, rendering the fish unmarketable to humans. Triaenophorus crassus is common in inland waters such as Leech Lake and Cass Lake, MN. One Canadian researcher has suggested that the parasite negatively affects the growth and weight of Ciscoes. Poor condition can reduce fecundity, leading to lower recruitment rates. This would mean a detrimental impact on not only individual fish, but the health of …

An Evolutionary Pathway For Coping With Emerging Infectious Disease, Scott Lyell Gardner, Daniel R. Brooks, Walter A. Boeger, Eric P. Hoberg

Zea E-Books Collection

Emerging infectious disease (EID) represents an existential threat to humanity. EIDs are increasing in frequency and impact because of climate change and other human activities. We are losing the battle against EIDs because of improper assessment of the risk of EID. This stems from adherence to a failed paradigm of pathogen-host associations that suggests EIDs ought to be both unpredictable and rare. That, in turn, leads to policies suggesting that crisis response is the best we can do. Real-time and phylogenetic assessments show EIDs to be neither rare nor unpredictable—this is the parasite paradox that shows the failures of the …

Gregarine Parasites In Zygoptera Of Keith County, Ne, Anisha Kadubandi, B. Gage Kircher Ii, Scott L. Gardner

UCARE: Research Products

Prevalence of Gregarine Protozoa Infection in Zygoptera Sourced from Varying Collection Sites in Keith County, Nebraska

B.G Kircher II, A. Kadubandi, and S.L. Gardner S. H.W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Cedar Point Biological Station, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Damselflies are ubiquitous flying insects of the order Odonata with thousands of species found around the world. The parasites associated with damselfly species are equally as ubiquitous, with the most common being gregarine protozoa and water mites, though other parasitic organisms such as trematodes are also found in these animals. Gaining an understanding of the relationships among hosts and …

Parasites Versus Predation: The Role Of Chronic And Acute Parasite Exposure In Infection Risk And Anti-Predator Behavior, Delaney Farrell

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

Parasites with complex, multi-host lifecycles often engage in host behavior manipulation to increase transmission between successive hosts. In intermediate fish hosts, previous research has measured increased frequency of conspicuous behaviors, decreased swimming performance, and reduced antipredator behavior, which would collectively increase the fish’s risk of predation. In ecosystems where this type of parasite increased trophic transmission (PITT) occurs, parasites can play a substantial role in food webs. In this study, I investigate how chronic versus acute exposure to the trematode Euhaplorchis sp. A. affects the antipredator behavior of the Gulf killifish Fundulus grandis. Using a fully crossed design, I …

Sheep Worms – Sustainable Summer-Autumn Worm Control, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Animal production and livestock factsheets

A summer drenching program for sheep worm control is now recognised as a key cause of drench resistance in Western Australia. However, some small changes can increase the sustainability of pre-emptive control programs. Drenches in summer should always be given to younger, growing sheep (current and previous year’s age groups), whereas adult sheep should be drenched in autumn, or if drenched in summer, some should be left untreated (if drenching at all). Research shows that this reduces the chance of developing drench resistance but still provides effective worm control.

Anticipating Infection: How Parasitism Risk Changes Animal Physiology, Patricia C. Lopes

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

1. Uninfected animals can attempt to prevent parasitism in many ways. Behavioural avoidance of parasitized conspecifics, for instance, is documented in several species.
2. Interactions with parasitized conspecifics can also, however, lead to physiological changes in uninfected animals, an effect that is much less well studied, and consequently, less well understood. The way in which exposure to parasitism risk changes the physiology of uninfected animals and the impacts of those changes on animal fitness remain a significant gap in knowledge.
3. Determining how the disease environment experienced by animals impacts their physiology, survival and reproduction has major implications for our knowledge of how …

A Checklist Of Parasites Of Peromyscus Maniculatus In North America, John Ubelaker, Gábor R. Rácz

MANTER: Journal of Parasite Biodiversity

This document represents a summary of parasites, in the broadest sense of the term, reported from Peromyscus maniculatus from throughout its range in North America. The document provides data from work ranging from paleontological findings to relatively current reports of parasites and parasitism from P. maniculatus and covers viruses, bacteria sensu lato, protists, helminths, and ectoparasites.

Parasites: The Inside Scoop, Scott Lyell Gardner, Judy Diamond, Gábor R. Rácz, Brenda Lee

Zea E-Books Collection

Parasites are organisms that live inside or on another species, called the host. Parasites depend on their hosts for food and a place to live. They may harm the host in small or large ways. Parasitism is the most common mode of life on Earth. Humans, other animals, and all plants have parasites, usually two or more kinds. Even parasites can have parasites. There are millions of species of parasites, and scientists discover new ones every day. Parasite specimens are stored in museums all around the world. One of the world’s largest collections is in the H. W. Manter Laboratory …

The Critical Role Of Tnf Receptors Versus Nadph Oxidase In Controlling Babesia Microti Infection, Amal Balahmar

NYMC Student Theses and Dissertations

Babesia microti is an apicomplexan parasite transmitted by tick bite that infects red blood cells. It is increasingly associated with transfusion-transmitted infections including fatal infection as the parasite survives blood banking procedures. The infection can range from asymptomatic to fatal. The parasite can persist in relatively asymptomatic individuals for up to two years. The host and parasite determinants of severity of infection and/or parasite clearance remain largely unknown. However, asplenic and immune suppressed individuals including the very young and relatively old, greater than 50 years of age, are more vulnerable to severe disease. The goal of the current research is …

Current Knowledge Of Studies Of Pathogens In Colombian Mammals, Viviana Gonzalez-Astudillo, Héctor E. Ramírez-Chaves, Joerg Henning, Thomas R. Gillespie

MANTER: Journal of Parasite Biodiversity

Mammals provide an important ecological habitat or niche space to microbial diversity, protistans (or protozoans) and metazoan parasites that can have profound effects on both human and animal health. Thus, understanding the status of mammalian species as hosts for pathogens holds relevance, especially during this time of anthropogenic environmental change. Despite the great diversity in the mammal fauna of Colombia, data in the literature on the occurrence of parasites and pathogens in these mammals are scarce and widely scattered. In order to understand the state of the knowledge of pathogens carried by wild mammals in Colombia, a systematic review of …

Direct And Indirect Effects Of The Caribbean Cymothoid Parasite Anilocra Haemuli On Host Energetics, Behavior, And Trophic Interactions, Rachel Lynn Welicky

Student Theses and Dissertations

The majority of coral reef research focuses on organisms that are familiar to humans, yet 80% of coral reef animals are parasites. Research on the direct effects of parasitism has suggested that hosts may undergo both behavioral and physiological changes. These changes may manifest at the ecosystem level, yet evidence of such changes are scarce. The objectives of this study were to investigate the direct and indirect effects of the Caribbean cymothoid parasite Anilocra haemuli on Haemulon flavolineatum (French grunt) energetics, behavior and trophic interactions. I conducted field surveys to measure A. haemuli prevalence of infection and determine its association …

Investigations Into The Incidence And Control Of Selected Parasites And Pathogens Which Infect Arkansas Horses, Stephanie Ann O'Berg Rainbolt

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Parasite control is an important aspect of health management of horses, particularly the control of gastrointestinal (GI) parasites. Recently, treatment recommendations have involved selective use of anthelmintics in horses with fecal egg counts (FEC) greater than a specified threshold. The objectives of this study were; (1) to determine the prevalence of helminths in our area by egg and L3 determinations, (2) to determine if certain horses maintained low FEC, therefore eliminating the need to treat them on a year-round basis and (3) to determine the effectiveness of four common treatments (moxidectin, ivermectin (pioneer and generic), fenbendazole and pyrantel tartrate) via …

First Record Of The Invasive Asian Fish Tapeworm Bothriocephalus Acheilognathi In Honduras, Central America, Guillermo Salgado-Maldonado, Wilfredo A. Matamoros, Brian R. Kreiser, Juan Manuel Caspeta-Mandujano, Edgar F. Mendoza-Franco

Faculty Publications

This paper provides the first report of the invasive Asian fish tapeworm, Bothriocephalus acheilognathi Yamaguti, 1934, in Honduras. The cestode was found in Profundulus portillorum (Cyprinodontiformes: Profundulidae), which represents a new host record, and which is a member of a genus faced with a variety of conservation challenges, now potentially complicated by the presence of this pathogenic cestode. Nearly complete sequence data from the ITS-1 5.8S and ITS-2 regions corroborate the determination based on morphological characteristics. Several species of carp were introduced to Honduras for aquaculture purposes in the early 1980s and the presence of the Asian fish tapeworm in …

Finding Them Before They Find Us: Informatics, Parasites, And Environments In Accelerating Climate Change, Daniel R. Brooks, Eric P. Hoberg, Walter A. Boeger, Scott Lyell Gardner, Kurt E. Galbreath, David Herczeg, Hugo H. Mejía-Madrid, S. Elizabeth Rácz, Altangerel Tsogtsaikhan Dursahinhan

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Parasites are agents of disease in humans, livestock, crops, and wildlife and are powerful representations of the ecological and historical context of the diseases they cause. Recognizing a nexus of professional opportunities and global public need, we gathered at the Cedar Point Biological Station of the University of Nebraska in September 2012 to formulate a cooperative and broad platform for providing essential information about the evolution, ecology, and epidemiology of parasites across host groups, parasite groups, geographical regions, and ecosystem types. A general protocol, documentation–assessment–monitoring–action (DAMA), suggests an integrated proposal to build a proactive capacity to understand, anticipate, and respond …

Reported Incidences Of Parasitic Infections In Marine Mammals From 1892 To 1978, John R. Felix

Zea E-Books Collection

The role of parasites in the lives and deaths of marine mammals has been scrutinized by biologists for decades, but the scientific literature prior to 1978 has been difficult to acquire and time-consuming to search. Now this new and extensive bibliography gives researchers a convenient resource for reviewing the classical literature on parasites of marine mammals so that historical infection prevalence and geographical distribution can be easily and properly assessed. This book contains detailed information about accepted (or suspected) taxonomic synonyms and geographical information about the host and/or parasite, covering the parasite groups Acanthocephala, Acarina, Anoplura, Cestoda, Nematoda, and Trematoda, …

Food, Parasites, And Epidemiological Transitions: A Broad Perspective, Karl Reinhard, Luis Fernando Ferreira, Françoise Bouchet, L. Sianto, J. M.F. Dutra, A. Iniguez, Daniela Leles, M. Le Bailley, Martín Horacio Fugassa, Elisa Pucu, Adauto Araújo

Karl Reinhard Publications

Pathoecology provides unique frameworks for understanding disease transmission in ancient populations. Analyses of Old and New World archaeological samples contribute empirically to our understanding of parasite infections. Combining archaeological and anthropological data, we gain insights about health, disease, and the way ancient people lived and interacted with each other and with their environments. Here we present Old and New World parasite evidence, emphasizing how such information reflects the different ways ancient populations exploited diverse environments and became infected with zoonotic parasites. It is clear that the most common intestinal helminthes (worm endoparasites) were already infecting ancient inhabitants of the New …

Patent Landscape Of Helminth Vaccines And Related Technologies, Jon R. Cavicchi, Stanley P. Kowalski, John Schroeder, Rayna Burke, Jillian Michaud-King

Law Faculty Scholarship

Executive Summary This report focuses on patent landscape analysis of technologies related to vaccines targeting parasitic worms, also known as helminths. These technologies include methods of formulating vaccines, methods of producing of subunits, the composition of complete vaccines, and other technologies that have the potential to aid in a global response to this pathogen. The purpose of this patent landscape study was to search, identify, and categorize patent documents that are relevant to the development of vaccines that can efficiently promote the development of protective immunity against helminths. The search strategy used keywords which the team felt would be general …

Nagmia Rodmani N. Sp., Nagmia Cisloi N. Sp. And Probolitrema Richiardii (López, 1888) (Gorgoderidae: Anaporrhutinae) From Elasmobranchs In The Gulf Of California, Mexico, Stephen S. Curran, Charles K. Blend, Robin M. Overstreet

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

The generic diagnosis of Nagmia Nagaty, 1930, is emended to include species having some vitelline follicles extending into the extracecal space. Two new species belonging in the genus are described from the Gulf of California: Nagmia rodmani n. sp. from the body cavity of the giant electric ray, Narcine entemedor Jordan and Starks, 1895, and Nagmia cisloi n. sp. from the body cavity of the smoothtail mobula, Mobula thurstoni (Lloyd, 1908). Both species are distinguished from each other and the 13 other known congeners by the number of testicular follicles, ratio of widths of oral sucker to ventral sucker, and …

A Review Of Species In The Genus Rhopalias (Rudolphi, 1819), Terry R. Haverkost, Scott Lyell Gardner

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Currently, there are 6 recognized species in the genus Rhopalias. These parasites are found in the small intestines of numerous species of marsupials throughout North and South America. Small mistakes in various classical taxonomic works have given rise to recent and numerous misidentifications of these species. In this work, we examine a total of 99 specimens across all species from museum collections in an attempt to determine informative taxonomic characters to distinguish these species. Despite confusion in the literature, accurate identification of these species can be achieved by observing the presence or absence of oral and flanking spines anterior …

A Macroevolutionary Mosaic: Episodic Host-Switching, Geographical Colonization And Diversification In Complex Host–Parasite Systems [Special Paper], Eric P. Hoberg, Daniel R. Brooks

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Aim: To integrate ecological fitting, the oscillation hypothesis and the taxon pulse hypothesis into a coherent null model for the evolution of complex host–parasite associations.

Location: Global.

Methods: This paper reviews and synthesizes literature that focuses on phylogenetic analyses and reciprocal mapping of a model system of hosts and their parasites to determine patterns of host–parasite associations and geographical distributions through time.

Results: Host-switching and geographical dispersal of parasites are common phenomena, occurring on many temporal and spatial scales. Diversification involving both co-evolution and colonization explains complex host–parasite associations. Across the expanse of Earth history, the major radiations in host– …

Illustrated Identification Keys To Strongylid Parasites Strongyllidae Nematoda Of Horses Zebras And Asses Equidae, J. Ralph Lichtenfels, Vitaliy A. Kharchenko, Grigory M. Dvojnos

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

The Equidae (the horse, Equus caballus, the ass, Equus asinus, zebras and their hybrids) are hosts to a great variety of nematode parasites, some of which can cause significant morbidity or mortality if individual hosts are untreated. Worldwide the nematode parasites of horses belong to 7 suborders, 12 families, 29 genera and 83 species. The great majority (19 of 29 genera and 64 of 83 species) are members of the family Strongylidae, which includes the most common and pathogenic nematode parasites of horses. Only the Strongylidae are included in this treatise.

The Strongylidae (common name strongylids) of horses …

A New Species Of Dipetalonema (Filarioidea: Onchocercidae) From Ateles Chamek From The Beni Of Bolivia, Juliana Notarnicola, F. Agustin Jimenez-Ruiz, Scott Lyell Gardner

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

We describe a new species of Dipetalonema occurring in the body cavity of Ateles chamek (Humboldt, 1812) from north-central Bolivia. Morphologic characters serving to separate Dipetalonema yatesi n. sp. from known forms include a vagina vera with a simple tube and thin walls and a left spicule, which possesses a handle shorter than the lamina (ratio 2.7); the latter displays an anterior membranous alae similar in length to the terminal flagellum, a distal extremity of the left spicule within a simple hook and a membrane, phasmids at the basis of the lappets, and heterogeneous muscles occupying the whole cavity. Dipetalonema …

Tadaridanema Delicatus (Schwartz, 1927) N. Gen., N. Comb. (Trichostrongylina: Molineidae) Parasite Of Molossidae Bats, Jorge Falcon-Ordaz, Carmen Guzman-Cornejo, Luis Garcia-Prieto, Scott Lyell Gardner

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

On the basis of the revision of the type material of Anoplostrongylus delicatus Schwartz, 1927, and new specimens collected from Tadarida brasiliensis mexicana (Saussure, 1860) in 4 arid localities from Mexico, we describe a new genus (Tadaridanema n. gen.), to which A. delicatus is transferred (as Tadaridanema delicatus (Schwartz, 1927) n. gen., n. comb.). This new genus differs from all other genera included in noplostrongylinae by having ray 2 larger than ray 3. In addition, T. delicatus can be differentiated from the type species of Anoplostrongylus (Anoplostrongylus paradoxus (Travassos, 1918)) because it possess vestibular branches equal in length, cephalic inflation …

Aspidoderidae From North America, With The Description Of A New Species Of Aspidodera (Nematoda: Heterakoidea), F. Agustin Jimenez-Ruiz, Scott Lyell Gardner, Andrea S. Varela-Stokes

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Aspidodera sogandaresi n. sp. (Heterakoidea: Aspidoderidae) from Dasypus novemcinctus Linnaeus, 1758 is herein described. This nematode occurs in armadillos from as far south as the canal zone of Panama, north through central Mexico, and into the southern United States. Previously identified as Aspidodera fasciata (Schneider, 1866), this new species has blunt projections on the lips and lateral expansions at the distal tips of the spicules, whereas A. fasciata has conspicuous digitiform projections on the lips, and a terminal round expansion at the tips of the spicules. Other species of the family present in North America include Aspidodera binansata Railliet and …

Sheep Updates 2005 - Part 7, S. M. Liu, A. C. Schlink, J. R. Williams, M. E. Dowling, J. C. Greeff, Roy Butler, Keith Croker, L. G. Butler, Rob Davidson, Ken Hart, Doug Harrington, Mario D'Antuono, Julian Gardner, Geoff Duddy, R. G. Woodgate, A. Le Feuvre, A Bailey, R. B. Besier, N. Campbell, I. Carmichael, S. Love, Richard Stovold

Sheep Updates

This session covers eight papers from different authors:

POSTERS

1. Sulpher in wool and its implications for fleece weight and sheep health, SM Liu, AC Schlink, JR Williams, CSIRO Livestock Industries Wembley WA, ME Dowling,JCGreef, Department of Agriculture Western Australia.

2. Stubbles for sheep: a reality check, Roy Butler, Keith Croker, Department of Agriculture Western Australia.

3. Genetic benchmarking using artificial insemination, LC Butler, JC Greeff, Department of Agriculture Western Australia.

4. The potential lambing performances of ewes in mixed age flocks, Kieth Croker, Department of Agriculture Western Australia, Rob Davidson, WAMMCO International, formally University of Western Australia, Ken Hart, …

Bolivian Ectoparasites: A New Species Of Laelapine Mite (Acari: Parasitiformes, Laelapidae) From The Rodent Neacomys Spinosus, Donald Gettinger, Scott Lyell Gardner

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Laelaps neacomydis n. sp. is described from the pelage of the rodent Neacomys spinosus collected in Bolivia. Collection records from northern Brazil, southeastern Peru, and central Bolivia indicate its wide distribution across Amazonas associated with rodents of the genus Neacomys. The formal taxonomic description and illustrations are derived from the adults (female and male). Two larger species of laelapine mites, Gigantolaelaps intermedius and L. boultoni, infest the same hosts at the same localities.

Family Rhopaliidae Looss, 1899, Valentin V. Radev, Scott Lyell Gardner, Ivan Kanev

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Members of the family Rhopaliidae Looss, 1899 include digenetic trematodes that are parasites of marsupials in the Nearctic and Neotropical regions. These forms are characterized by having two anteriorly directed proboscides armed with spines and situated bilaterally relative to the oral sucker. The family was first established by Looss (1899) as the Rhopaliadae. Braun (1901b) incorrectly spelled the subfamily name as Rhopaliadinae. These trematodes were further studied and redescribed by Fuhrmann (1928) and Bresslau (1932), while Pratt (1902) appears to have been the first to consider the group to be related to the schinostomes. Viana (1924) emended the spelling of …