58 
Nematodes in Elephants 
PARABRONEMA, n.g. 
Spiruridae: Polymyarian worms, having the mouth bordered by paired 
lateral lips, externally to which there are a dorsal and a ventral shield of 
cuticle. Each lip bears one large, median lateral papilla and a pair of small 
sublateral papillae. Of the dorsal and ventral shields, each carries a pair of 
larger papillae (Figs. 1, 4, p.), situated at some distance behind the extremity 
of the head. The cuticle of the head is thick, and folded in a complicated manner 
so as to form a circlet of six horseshoe-shaped auricular appendages (Figs. 
1, 4, a.), of which two are lateral, two subdorsal and two sub ventral. The open 
anterior end of the horseshoe is partly filled up by a vesicular swelling of the 
cuticle. The edge of each of these appendages is further folded to form a 
groove somewhat resembling the cervical grooves or “cordons” of the Acuaria 
group. 
The body is rather slender, tapering rather more in front than behind. 
The cuticle shows more or less distinct transverse striations. The buccal cavity, 
at a short distance from the oral aperture, is elongated transversely in a 
direction at right angles to the sagittal plane, and then passes into a long, 
cylindrical, cuticular tube (Figs. 1, 4), with thick walls. The oesophagus 
(Fig. 1, A) consists of a short, narrow, anterior portion and a long, somewhat 
wider, posterior portion, both portions being muscular. The anterior portion 
is surrounded by the nerve-ring. The minute excretory pore is situated at 
about the level of the nerve-ring, and a pair of cervical papillae (Fig. 1, A, c.p.) 
with bristle-like terminations a little further back. 
The tail of the male is coiled ventrally into a spiral, provided near the 
extremity with lateral alar expansions, and largely covered on the ventral 
surface with interrupted, longitudinal cuticular ridges (Fig. 2). The spicules 
(Figs. 3, 6) are markedly unequal, the slender left spicule being from two to 
four times as long as the right, which is rather stouter. A small, somewhat 
triangular accessory piece is present (Figs. 3, 6). The paired caudal papillae 
have long nervous pulps, and are present to the number of six pairs, of which 
four are preanal and two postanal. The arrangement of the corresponding 
papillae of the two sides is somewhat asymmetrical. The anterior pair of 
postanal papillae (Figs. 2, 5) present a remarkable peculiarity, lying trans¬ 
versely across the ventral surface, the left a little in front of the right, with 
their terminations either passing beyond, or at least close to, the mid-ventral 
line of the tail. In addition to the paired papillae, a large median double 
papilla is present immediately in front of the cloacal aperture. 
The female is considerably larger than the male. The tail is short, conically 
pointed or blunt, and characteristically curved towards the dorsal side. The 
vulva is situated almost immediately behind or in front of the posterior end 
of the oesophagus. The vagina is long, narrow and muscular, and runs straight 
backwards with the exception of a curious little U-shaped bend in its course 
(Fig. 7) at a short distance from the vulva. The two uterine branches are 
