Twelve American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) were obtained from three different areas of South Carolina. One species of pentastome (Sebekia oxycephala), two species of nematodes (Dujardinascaris waltoni and Multicaecum tenuicolle), four species of trematodes (Polycotyle ornata, Acanthostomum coronarium, Archaeodiplostomum acetabulatum and Pseudocrocodilicola americaniense) and one species of hemogregarine (Haemogregarina crocodilnorum) were recovered. Polycotyle ornata was observed only in alligators from Par Pond while P. americaniense was found in Par Pond and coastal hosts, A. acetabulatum from Kiawah Island and coastal alligators, and A. coronarium only at Kiawah Island. These patterns suggest disjunct distributions for the trematode species in South Carolina alligators. The other parasites were found in alligators from all three locations. The only parasite observed to initiate damage or lesions in the alligator was the pentastome.

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Author notes

1

This work was supported in part by Contract No. EY-76-S-09-0965 between the Energy Research and Development Administration and Wake Forest University.

2

Biology Department, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27109, USA.

3

Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, Aiken, South Carolina 29801, USA.

4

South Carolina Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources, Columbia, South Carolina 29211, USA.

5

Department of Biological Sciences, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colorado 80639, USA.

© 1978 Wildlife Disease Association
1978