THE HELMINTHS PARASITIC IN THE AMPHIBIA AND REPTILIA OF HOUSTON, TEXAS, AND VICINITY By Paul D. Harwood Rice Institute, Houston, Tex. CONTENTS Page Introduction 1 Trcmatoda 2 Cestoda 31 Ncmatoda 42 Page Acanthocephala 64 Parasites listed systematically by hosts. 65 Literature cited 6T INTRODUCTION ^ Our knowledge of the helminths parasitic in the amphibians and reptiles of North America is still very limited. Leidy, Stafford, Cort, Stimkard, and Walton have made the most important contributions to (he scientific study of this group of worms, but many authors have contributed important papers. I was engaged in the collection and study of the parasites of the Reptilia and Amphibia of tlie Houston, Tex., region, for 2i/2 years. More than 500 host animals represent-ing 50 species have been examined. All adult parasitic worms, other than leeches, were collected and preserved for study. Usually the en-cysted forms were neglected, but one interesting cysticercoid is herein described. There is no universal agreement among helminthologists as to the exact status of many of the major groups that are used in systematic classification. In this paper the classification of the trematodes is based on Faust's Human Helminthology, that of the cestodes on Southwell's Fauna of British India : Cestodes, and that of the nema-todes on Baylis and Daubney's A Synopsis of the Families and Gen-era of Nematoda. The host names employed are those used in Stejne-ger and Barbour's A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles, second edition. This work has been done under the direction and criticism of Dr. A. C. Chandler, of the Rice Institute, Houston, Tex., for whose in-terest and suggestions I wish to express my sincere appreciation. I am further indebted to him for the use of his private library of reprints. Many other acknowledgments are made in various places throughout the paper. No. 2940.— Proceedings U. S. National Museum. Vol. 81, Art. 17. 126821—32 1 1
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