Angiostrongylus michiganensis sp. n. (Nematoda: Metastrongyloidea), a Lungworm Occurring in the Shrew, Sorex cinereus cinereus, in Michigan

Abstract

Angiostrongylus michiganensis sp. n. from the bronchioles of Sorex cinereus cinereus in Michigan is described. It can be distinguished from a closely related European species, A. soricis, by its greater body length, longer spicules, and the more anterior position of the vulva. It differs from A. blarini, an American species also found in shrews, in being larger, having longer spicules, and by not occurring in fibrous cysts in the lung. The species of Angiostrongylus and related genera are discussed. Two species of Angiostrongylus have been reported from the continental United States. Dougherty (1946) described A. gubernaculatus from the badger (Taxidea taxus neglecta) and skunk (Mephitis mephitis holzneri) in California, and Ogren (1954) described A. blarini from the short-tailed shrew (Blarina brevicauda) in Illinois. During the summer of 1956 investigations were carried out at the University of Michigan Biological Station, Cheboygan, Michigan, on an undescribed species of Angiostrongylus occurring in small mammals. The worm was found in the lungs of 14 of 41 Sorex cinereus cinereus Kerr, a common small shrew, from a locality known as Reese's Bog. In the previous summer, other workers at the Biological Station observed the same parasite in Sorex, and the same or a different lungworm was observed in Microtus pennsylvanicus pennsylvanicus (Ord) and Zapus hudsonius hudsonius (Zimmerman). Specimens from the latter two animals were not available for study. The description of the new species is based on material collected from Sorex only. The average for each range of measurements is given in parentheses. Measurements are in microns unless otherwise indicated. The drawings were made with the aid of a camera lucida. Received for publication 4 January 1967. * This study was supported in part by grants AI04919 and E-936 from the NIH, Public Health Service. t Present address: c/o South Pacific Commission, P. 0. Box 9, Noumea, New Caledonia. Address reprint requests to Department of Tropical Medicine and Public Health, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana. Angiostrongylus michiganensis sp. n.