With large size comes a larger inner capacity, and for Alaskan bears, it seems that their size makes them a perfect home for some shockingly large tapeworms.
An IFL Science report specified that, unfortunately, it's not even that unusual, so photographers and trail cameras of wildlife have picked up a view.
In a recently posted Cool Green Science blog, Matthew Miller, science communications director for The Nature Conservancy, shone a light on the striking body of video evidence that sometimes, Alaskan bears are wandering around with that appears like buntings that trail from their anuses.
Quite different from what's left of some wild parties, these pale coils, as described in this report, are actually parasites.
A specific video, as shown as uploaded by Cool Green Science on YouTube, which Miller said to have embedded for viewing pleasure, showcases a large black bear with a "mystery string" dragging along, seemingly in its butt.
An Approximately 2-Meter Tapeworm
A stomach-churning scenario was videoed by Michael Kampnich, a conservationist, on Prince of Wales Island, Alaska, and appears to be displaying a two-meter tapeworm.
In the video, bears can seemingly attempt to shake loose the freeloaders by practicing what was shown on recording as the "much-loved bear tree pole dance," although, as was the case for the bear in the recorded video Kampnich, this is not always considered a success.
Alaskan bears are known for their love for salmon, which they're scooping out of freshwater rivers. The same bodies of water are regrettably home to tapeworm eggs nibbled up by crustaceans. These same crustaceans are consumed by salmon, with salmon being the same ones that the bears scoop up.
Being able to ride in the food chain all the way to the top, the worm is setting up camp in the digestive system of the bear, where it's growing to great lengths before it slips out the exit.
In their lifetime, the parasitic worm will discharge lots of eggs, slipping out with the fecal matter of the bear, which they then deposit into rivers. And here begins the tapeworm's lifecycle all over again.
Tapeworms in Pets
Bears are not the only ones carrying tapeworms in their bodies. Even other animals, specifically pets, have these massive parasites, too.
According to PetCoach, even though many cats and dogs with tapeworms do not show any clinical sign, tapeworm segments may exist in the feces or around the animal's rear end.
Essentially, some animals lick and scoot their bottoms on the ground as their itch-reliever. In heavy infections and young puppies, possible symptoms are weight loss, diarrhea, anemia, vomiting, and intestinal blockage.
Tapeworms, dogs, and cats are carrying all have life cycles that comprise an intermediary host. Such hosts would comprise domestic animals like pigs and sheep, fish, and fleas. All of the adult forms of these tapeworms live in the cat's or dog's digestive system.
Other tapeworm types can infect cats and dogs, including Taenia species, Echinococcus granulosus and E. multiocularis, Spirometra mansonoides, Diphyllobothrium latum.
Lastly, dogs and cats become infested with these particular types when they ingest infected rats and wildlife.
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