Frequency of Occurrence of the Rat Lungworm Parasite in the Invasive Island Apple Snail in South Carolina, USA.

The rat lungworm Angiostrongylus cantonensis is a nematode parasite that can cause potentially fatal eosinophilic meningitis in humans. The life cycle of A. cantonensis involves multiple hosts, with the most common terminal hosts being rodents and intermediate hosts comprising gastropods.

Pleistocene glacial refugia across the Appalachian Mountains and coastal plain in the millipede genus Narceus: evidence from population genetic, phylogeographic, and paleoclimatic data.

Background: Species that are widespread throughout historically glaciated and currently non-glaciated areas provide excellent opportunities to investigate the role of Pleistocene climatic change on the distribution of North American biodiversity. Many studies indicate that northern animal populations exhibit low levels of genetic diversity over geographically widespread areas whereas southern populations exhibit relatively high levels. Recently, paleoclimatic data have been combined with niche-based distribution modeling to locate possible refugia during the Last Glacial Maximum.