Sarconema		Contents		Rev 10/13/2026
Swan Heartworm Nematode		Classification		Hosts
		Morphology and Anatomy		Life Cycle
Return to Sarconema Menu		Economic Importance		Damage
		Distribution		Management
Return to Onchocercidae Menu		Feeding		References
		Nemaplex Home Page		Go to Dictionary of Terminology

Classification:

Nematoda

Chromadorea
Spiruria

Spirurida

            Filarioidea

   Onchocercidae

Sarconema Wehr, 1939

Type species of the genus: Sarconema eurycerca Wehr, 1939

.Synonyms:

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Morphology and Anatomy:

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Distribution:

Vector-borne filarial nematodes; parasites of birdes. Type species is a parsite of swans and geese.

Initial detection of Sarconema by Wehr (1939) was from the cardiac muscle of Whistling Swans.

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Economic Importance:

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Feeding:

Food Sources and Feeding strategies for the genus Sarconema

Parasites of birds

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Biology and Epidemiology

Sarconema eurycerca as an example:

Intermediate host is a feather louse Trinoton anserinum which has all the attributes required for that role: it is an onbligate parasite, capable of ingesting microfilariae while taking a blood meal from the definitive host (swan), has high mobility and can move among swans. Microfilariae develop to the third stage in the louse.

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Hosts:

Birds. The type species (Sarconema eurycerca) has been recorded from four species of swans: Whistling, Trumpeter, Bewick and Mute (Cohen, 1988),

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Life Cycle:

Filarioid nematodes are subcutaneous parasites transmitted by the bite of hematophagous arthropods which harbor a larval stage.

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Damage:

Swans infected by Sarconema eurycerca have significantly elevated lymphocyte percentages  and lower pecentages of eosinophil, haematocrit and red corpuscles that uninfected swans (Cohen, 1988).

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Management:

Vector control.

Infections can be treated with ivermectin.

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References:

Cohen, S. 1988. Sarconema eurycerca (Wehr): the heartworm of swans and the role of Trinoton anserinum (F) as an intermediate host. Doctoral Thesis, Loughborough University of Technology. 202p.

Wehr, E.E. 1939. New genera and species of Filarioidea. III. Sarconema eurycerca. Poc. Helminthol. Soc. Wash. 6(2)

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Revised by Howard Ferris: October 13, 2026.