Physocephalus sexalatus

Order: RHABDITIDA
Family: SPIROCERCIDAE
AREA OF ORIGIN: EUROPE – ASIA
Hosts:
SUIDAE

Physocephalus sexalatus is a species of nematode that reaches a length of 1.30 – 1.54 mm. It mainly parasitizes in the gastric mucosa of suids, i.e. wild boars and domestic pigs. However, there is also evidence of it in camels, horses, donkeys, cattle and lagomorphs. Coprophagous beetles from the Geotrupidae family serve as intermediate hosts. In addition, many other vertebrate species of various classes, such as reptiles, can serve as paratenic hosts.

Human pathogenicity: An infestation of humans with Physocephalus sexalatus is currently not known.

Exemplary Sources
  • Kirillov, A.A., Yu Kirillova, N. (2021)
    First finding of spirurid larva (Chromadorea, Spirurida) in the common European viper Vipera berus (Linnaeus, 1758) of the Russian fauna. IOP Conf. Ser.: Earth Environ. Sci. 818, 012017