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Calodium hepaticum, or more traditionally Capillaria
hepatica, is a cosmopolitan nematode infecting some rodents and other
mammals. Eggs are deposited in the liver and, once released into the
environment by predation or decomposition, embryonate in the soil. An
interesting study by Childs et al. (1988,
Can. J. Zool. 66: 2769-2775) found 87.4% of Norway rats in Baltimore,
Maryland to be infected! A number of human cases have been
reported, and though rarely pathogenic the nematode may occasionally
cause liver damage or death. Indeed rats
may be considered the primary reservoir of the parasite.
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