An Ecological Study of the Helminth Fauna of Macgillivray's Seaside Sparrow, Ammospiza maritima macgillivraii (Audubon)

A survey of helminth parasites of Macgillivray's seaside sparrow, Ammospiza maritima macgillivraii (Audubon) from the vicinity of Beaufort, N. C. yielded new host records for nine species of trematodes, three of cestodes, two of Acanthocephala and seven of nematodes. Comparisons of each group of worms from birds from two different ecological environments and from immature and adult hosts were made. Differences were not as great as expected between the rising shore, or driftline, and the flat, or non-driftline, types of environments. Immature birds carried a greater infection of all worms except the nematodes which were much more prevalent in the adults. Infection in immature birds varied significantly in the two environments only in so far as cestodes and nematodes were concerned. It was impossible to correlate differences in infections of adults because of their migratory habits. Acanthocephalan infections were the most numerous. Nematodes, cestodes and trematodes, respectively, showed lower incidence in the total data.