A new parasite discovery in Micronesia: eggs of the nematode Toxocara canis at archaeological sites on Ebon Atoll, Marshall Islands extend the known dog presence by c.600 years

Mark Horrocks; Marshall I. Weisler; Quan Hua; Bronwen Presswell

doi:10.1002/arco.5342

Back

A new parasite discovery in Micronesia: eggs of the nematode Toxocara canis at archaeological sites on Ebon Atoll, Marshall Islands extend the known dog presence by c.600 years

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

A new parasite discovery in Micronesia: eggs of the nematode Toxocara canis at archaeological sites on Ebon Atoll, Marshall Islands extend the known dog presence by c.600 years

Mark Horrocks, Marshall I. Weisler, Quan Hua and Bronwen Presswell

Archaeology in Oceania, pp.1-7

15/10/2024

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/arco.5342

Handle:

https://hdl.handle.net/10523/43025

Abstract

domestic dogs

parasite

helminth

Ascarididae

Micronesia

Little is known of helminth parasites in Micronesia in archaeological contexts. This study presents a parasitological analysis of soil and sediment samples from Ebon Atoll in the Marshall Islands, eastern Micronesia. Microscopic eggs of the dog ( Canis lupus familiaris ) nematode Toxocara canis , which could have adversely affected the health of local people as well as their dogs, were found at two sites, in one example in habitation layers dated to 1830–1625 calBP (95% CI), extending the date for the known presence of dogs in the Marshall Islands by at least 600 years. This study represents the first confirmed evidence of pre‐European helminth parasites in Micronesia. As similar Melanesian and Polynesian studies have previously been reported, the study also completes the initial, pre‐contact helminth record for the three main island regions of Oceania.

Files and links (2)

pdf

Archaeology in Oceania - 2024 - Horrocks - A new parasite discovery in Micronesia eggs of the nematode Toxocara canis at525.63 kBDownload View

Published (Version of record)CC BY V4.0, Open Access

url

https://doi.org/10.1002/arco.5342View

Published (Version of record) Open

Metrics

3 File views/ downloads

9 Record Views

Details

Record Identifier: 9926613290101891
Title: A new parasite discovery in Micronesia: eggs of the nematode Toxocara canis at archaeological sites on Ebon Atoll, Marshall Islands extend the known dog presence by c.600 years
Creators: Mark Horrocks
Marshall I. Weisler
Quan Hua
Bronwen Presswell
Publication Details: Archaeology in Oceania, pp.1-7
Academic Unit: Zoology
Publisher: Wiley
Grant note: Radiocarbon dating was funded by grant number 12/004 to Weisler and Hua from the Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering. Analysis of Marshall Islands sediment samples was funded by the University of Queensland.
Date published ; e-published: 15/10/2024
Copyright: Copyright © The Author(s) 2024. This work was first published in Archaeology in Oceania (Wiley). This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided that the original work is properly attributed to the creator(s) and the source, a link to the Creative Commons license is provided, and any changes made are indicated.
Language: English
Resource Type ; Subtype: Journal article

A new parasite discovery in Micronesia: eggs of the nematode Toxocara canis at archaeological sites on Ebon Atoll, Marshall Islands extend the known dog presence by c.600 years

Abstract

Files and links (2)

Metrics

Details

Usage Policy