Onchocerciasis in Cuttle and Associated Animals. 15 



of which pays special attention to the parasites of domesticated 

 animals— the widespread system of meat inspection by properly 

 qualified Veterinary officers, and the numerous Agricultural Experi- 

 mental stations throughout the States. 



Hitherto, a species Filaria lienalis (possibly to be referred to the 

 genus Onchocerca) has been described by Dr. Stiles in 1892 from the 

 capsule of the spleen of cattle in U.S.A., but nothing comparable 

 in position and nodule structure with 0. gibsoni has ever been 

 recorded from that country, nor in my visits to the Bureau of 

 Animal Industry, or the State Veterinary Schools of Pennsylvania, 

 Ohio, or the Agricultural Experiment Station of Illinois, was I able 

 to hear of anything further. To test their possible existence in the 

 most probable district, the Chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry 

 {Dr. Melvin) and the Chief of the Zoological Division (Dr. B. H. 

 Ransom) kindly undertook to have investigations made to determine 

 definitely whether or not these worm-nodules exist in the descen- 

 dants of the imported animals referred to above, and whether it has 

 spread at all to the local breeds. As they have not so far, however, 

 been recognised by the Veterinary Inspectors of this country, one 

 may well assume that they are not present there. 1 



I was, unfortunately, unable to visit South America, and no 

 definite information is yet forthcoming therefrom. However, a 

 careful investigation has been very recently made into the cattle 

 industry in South America by two independent and eminently quali- 

 fied officials— Dr. Melvin (1914, p. 347) from the United States 

 and Mr. Dunlop Young (Chief Meat Inspector, London) from Eng- 

 land (1914, p. 522). Neither of these observers have any evidence 

 of the existence of worm-nodules in South America, and such must 

 surely have come under their notice, especially under that of Mr. 

 Young, who has been familiar officially with their occurrence in 

 Australian cattle. One may, therefore, conclude that so far they 

 are absent from South America. 



It is, however, interesting to note that in 1906 (Gunn, p. 31) 

 200 young Ongole cattle were taken from the Madras Presidency, 

 where these nodules are now known, to Brazil, so that it will be well 

 to follow the effects of this importation in this respect. 



PART II.— SYSTEMATIC. 

 The question of the specific identification of the nematode caus- 

 ing the worm-nodules found in Indian cattle has been a matter of 

 considerable difficulty in some respects — chiefly in view of the 



1 See end of Addendum 2. 



