New helminth egg discoveries at the Cloudman archaeological site, Michigan, North America show evidence for parasites from Early Late Woodland (AD 500/600-1000) to Historic times

Mark Horrocks; Elspeth Geiger; Simon H Bickler; Bronwen Presswell

doi:10.1017/S0022149X25100783

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New helminth egg discoveries at the Cloudman archaeological site, Michigan, North America show evidence for parasites from Early Late Woodland (AD 500/600-1000) to Historic times

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New helminth egg discoveries at the Cloudman archaeological site, Michigan, North America show evidence for parasites from Early Late Woodland (AD 500/600-1000) to Historic times

Mark Horrocks, Elspeth Geiger, Simon H Bickler and Bronwen Presswell

Journal of helminthology, Vol.99, e129

18/12/2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022149X25100783

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https://hdl.handle.net/10523/49242

Abstract

Ascarididae

Great Lakes

Taeniidae

dogs

helminth eggs

indigenous

Here we report microfossil helminth analysis of soils/sediments from the Cloudman site, Lake Huron, Michigan, encompassing the Early Late Woodland (AD 500/600-1000) to the early Historic period. Results reveal eggs of the dog nematode Toxocara canis (a first for North America), the human nematode Ascaris lumbricoides, and a species of taeniid cestode, intestinal parasites that could have affected the health of people and their domesticated dogs. The eggs suggest that the presence of dogs at the site remained relatively stable over the c. 1000-year span of this period. The results offer a new line of evidence for possible dog presence and domestication in North America.

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Record Identifier: 9926820616901891
Title: New helminth egg discoveries at the Cloudman archaeological site, Michigan, North America show evidence for parasites from Early Late Woodland (AD 500/600-1000) to Historic times
Creators: Mark Horrocks
Elspeth Geiger
Simon H Bickler
Bronwen Presswell
Publication Details: Journal of helminthology, Vol.99, e129
Academic Unit: Zoology
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Grant note: Linda Britton and John R. Halsey Great Lakes Research Fund and James B. Griffin Endowment, University of Michigan Museum of Anthropological Archaeology
Date published ; e-published: 18/12/2025
Comment: The published version is not available in full-text in OUR Archive. Where available, a link to the published version is provided (check the DOI and/or the Files and links section). The full-text item may be open access on the publisher's website. An earlier version of the work (such as authors' accepted manuscript following peer-review or unreviewed preprint/author's original version) may be available in the Files and links section of this record. Alternatively, readers may have subscription access to the full-text from the publisher.
Language: English
Resource Type ; Subtype: Journal article

New helminth egg discoveries at the Cloudman archaeological site, Michigan, North America show evidence for parasites from Early Late Woodland (AD 500/600-1000) to Historic times

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