Coccidia of the Cotton Rat, Sigmodon hispidus, from Alabama

One-hundred ninety-three rats were collected from 2 areas in east-central Alabama and examined for coccidian oocysts. Seven types of oocysts were found in the cotton rats. Eimeria tuskegeensis sp. n., Eimeria roperi sp. n., Eimeria sigmodontis sp. n., and Eimeria webbae sp. n. produced patent infections after sporulated oocysts were orally inoculated into coccidia-free cotton rats. An Eimeria sp., an Isospora sp., and an Adelina sp. are described but are not named as new species because they did not produce patent infections in cotton rats.