Comparative Parasitology 67(1) 2000 - Peru State College

108 COMPARATIVE PARASITOLOGY, 67(1), JANUARY 2000
Figure 1. Gordius difficilis, posterior end of a male. Scale bar = 35 fxm. Note cloacal opening (C),
precloacal line of hairlike structure (H), and postcloacal ridge (R).
Gordians have been recorded from one individual
of Chlaenius sericeus Forster, 1771, but
the worm could be identified only as Gordius
sp. because of the immaturity of the specimen
(Leffler, 1984). The only other record of the genus
Chlaenius as a host for a "nematoid parasite"
was from Chlaenius tomentosus Say, 1830
In that report, insect parts and the worm were;
located in the stomach of the beetle (Forbes,
1880). However, nematomorphs are usually
found outside the host's gut. Thus, it is likely
that the worm was ingested while inside another
insect and was not a parasite of the beetle.
Gordius difficilis has only been reported from
Roan Mountain, western North Carolina (Mont
gomery, 1898) and from Franklin County, Massachusetts
(Smith, 1994). This report extends the
known range of G. difficilis and for the first time
provides information of a host for this species.
We would like to thank Myrna Gainsforth for
providing access to White Gate Creek and the
Cedar Point Biological Station for providing facilities.
This project was partially funded by the
Center for Great Plains Studies Research erants-
Copyright © 2011, The Helminthological Society of Washington
in-aid for graduate students (University of Nebraska-Lincoln,
fall 1998).
Literature Cited
Chandler, C. M. 1985. Horsehair worms (Nematomorpha,
Gordioidea) from Tennessee, with a review
of taxonomy and distribution in the United
States. Journal of the Tennessee Academy of Sciences
60:59-62.
Forbes, S. A. 1880. Notes on insectivorous Coleoptera.
Bulletin of the Illinois Laboratory of Natural
History 1:167-176.
Leffler, S. R. 1984. Record of a horsehair worm
(Nematomorpha: Gordiidae) parasitizing Chlaenius
sericeus Forster (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in
Washington. Coleopterists Bulletin 38:130.
Miralles, D. A. B. 1975. Nuevo aporte al conocimiento
de la Gordiofauna Argentina. Neotropica 21:
99-103.
Montgomery, T. H. J. 1898. The Gordiacea of certain
American collections with particular reference to
the North American fauna. Bulletin of the Museum
of Comparative Zoology, Harvard 32:23-59.
Smith, D. G. 1994. A reevaluation of Gordius aquaticus
difficilis Montgomery 1898 (Nematomorpha,
Gordioidea, Gordiidae). Proceedings of the Academy
of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 145:29-
34.