Microscope view of a Trichinella spiralis larva in its nurse-cell complex.

Trichina Worm (Trichinella spiralis) — Nurse cell–larva complex under a microscope.

Creator: [Stefan Walkowski](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Navaho). CC BY-SA 3.0. [CC BY-SA 3.0 deed](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en).

Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0

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Species record

Trichina Worm

Trichinella spiralis

Explore the Trichina Worm (Trichinella spiralis) species record in The Ark Is Earth, including classification, habitat, distribution, conservation information, and sources.

Summary

Trichinella spiralis is a parasitic roundworm whose adult stage lives in a vertebrate host’s intestine; its larvae can migrate to and encyst in muscle. People may be infected by eating undercooked meat containing the larvae.

Classification in this archive

  1. Kingdom: Animals
  2. Phylum: Roundworms
  3. Class: Enoplean roundworms
  4. Order: Trichinellida
  5. Family: Trichinellidae
  6. Genus: Trichinella

Habitat and distribution

Selected documented locations — not a complete species range.

Habitat
intestinal tract of vertebrate hosts, striated muscle tissue of vertebrate hosts
Selected regions
Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania, South America

Conservation status

Conservation status not recorded.

Did you know?

  • In its life cycle, young larvae can move from an animal’s intestine into its muscles.

More images

Preserved Trichinella spiralis specimen, Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, collection YPM IZ 095173.

Trichina Worm (Trichinella spiralis) — Preserved Yale Peabody Museum specimen, YPM IZ 095173.

Creator: Daniel J. Drew, source GBIF occurrence 1502532830. CC0, Creative Commons Zero public-domain dedication. [CC0 1.0 deed](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en).

Licence: CC0 (Creative Commons Zero, Public Domain Dedication)

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Sources and attribution